The Olympian Fate
by Sei-2405
Summary: A new challenge is brought by a new prophecy. Annnabeth, Nico, Percy, Thalia and a new half-blood gather to decide the fate of the Gods. As my old fiction this one contains romance among two girls. If you don't like it please refrain yourself of reading.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction except for Layla. This fiction does not have any intention or so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

Sei.2405

**The Olympians Fate**

**I – The New Prophecy**

Camp Half-blood was on the cusp of winter. Since the war against the Titans last summer, many campers had decided to stay at the campgrounds to help make the necessary improvements to the infrastructure and defenses. Chiron and the Satyrs were busy dealing with the many arrivals of half-bloods, and Grover (who had recently become one of the heads of the Council) was dispatched to find, secure and lead new half-bloods to camp.

It was November, and even if it wasn't quite winter yet, Mr. D (code name for the god of the wine Dionysius, and present camp director) had decided that it was time for it. His arguments were that wine goes best with the cold season.

Percy, Nico, and Annabeth were among some of the campers that had decided to stay at camp in the fall and winter months. That night they were gathered around the campfire enjoying a rare moment of free time. They were having marshmallows and hot chocolate, and talking excitedly.

"Come on Annabeth, quit that computer for a few hours! Even Nico is enjoying his hot chocolate more than you are!" Percy looked at Nico, "No offence man!" who in turn, replied "None taken."

"Percy, I have to be constantly updated of how the construction in Mount Olympus is going. Hephaestus just created this amazing website for me, where I can check on the progress anytime I want and in real time too. I can even choose the area and the camera view I want!" The daughter of Athena said without taking her eyes off the laptop screen.

"You're no fun. You know that?" Percy mumbled, and this in turn led to a small argument between the group. But after a little while, Annabeth was finally convinced to close her laptop and soon the conversation turned to talk about the new half-bloods that had arrived at camp. 

"That new girl in the Aphrodite cabin is a little scary." said Nico

"Which one are you talking about? The girl with the short blond hair, who appears to be about sixteen years old? Yeah, she is kinda strange, but you can't deny that she is pretty." Percy gave Nico a suggestive look.

"Hey Nico, maybe you could start going out with her. What do you think? Hmmm?" 

"Well I… I mean, yeah she is p-pretty…" Nico was trying not to blush. "But she keeps staring at me… and everywhere I go I see her… Not that I mind at all but…" 

"So our Nico has an admirer! Wow!" Percy said in a teasing voice, chuckling at his friend whose face was now a deep shade of pink.

"Come on Percy, give Nico a break." Annabeth said in Nico's defense.

Percy was about to reply, when Chiron interrupted the three demigods' conversation. The centaur was in his wheel-chair mode. He looked very warm and comfortable in the chilly evening, because of the two blankets piled in his lap. But how he managed to drive the wheel-chair around the campground with its difficult and varied terrain was still a mystery for the demigods. He gave the three teens a small smile of greeting.

"I will have to talk to Dionysius about this weather. Centaurs are not meant to live in such cold conditions." Chiron said while rubbing his hands vigorously together. The three demigods looked at each other and smiled.

"Oh well," the centaur continued, "I actually came here to talk with you Annabeth. Would you mind following me to the main cabin? Alone." He added, sensing what the other two teens were about to say.

"Alright"

The young woman gave her friends a curious look, grabbed her bag and walked the short distance with Chiron towards the cabin. Once they were inside, he gestured to Annabeth to take a seat at one of the couches close to the fireplace. Chiron waited until the girl was comfortable and handed her a piece of paper that he had picked up from the coffee table in front of her. On the paper Annabeth read the words _Boston, MA_. She stared at the paper and then at Chiron, but she had no idea what was going on. The centaur was about to explain the mysterious words, when the front door of the cabin opened. They both turned towards the door. A red haired girl, who was shivering from the cold night, came inside. Annabeth leapt up from her chair, recognizing the woman at once.

"Rachel!" Annabeth went to give her friend a hug. 

Rachel blushed, but hugged her friend back. "How have you been Annabeth? And what is up with this temperature? It's freezing out there!"

"I am doing fine thanks. And of course the temperature is Dionysius' doing." Annabeth pulled out of the hug and stood in front of her friend, smiling broadly at her. Rachel noticed the piece of paper in her hand.

"So I see Chiron already talked to you about it…"

"Not exactly my dear friend… I was just about to begin. You got here at an excellent time." The centaur said. All of them took a seat around the fireplace.

"Well Annabeth, like I was about to say, yesterday I received an Iris-message from Grover and he said that he needed help to secure a half-blood-" 

"Oh! That's what Boston, MA, means…" The blond interrupted Chiron, who let her talk, since it was clear she had more to say, as she suddenly realized what was going on.

"-But Chiron there are soooo many half-bloods at camp and you know how busy I am with the Olympus construction and-"

"My dear, things are more complicated than they seem. Yesterday when I received the message from Grover, the Oracle spoke through Rachel." Annabeth looked at Rachel and waited for her friend to say something.

"Well, you know that when the Oracle speaks through me I can't remember a thing…" Rachel said, clearly looking uncomfortable. "It's kind of annoying. Luckily I was talking to Chiron through an Iris-message and he was able to get the prophecy."

"Yes. Luckily…" The Centaur said with a hint of irony in his voice. "Anyways, this is what the prophecy says;

_A new Mount of Silver will be created,_

_Where a daughter of Athena will find her place,  
>A love gesture will save,<em>

_A half-blood who holds Olympus reign and fate."_

Annabeth was speechless. She didn't really understand the prophecy but she knew it had something to do with her, or else why would Chiron have told her? Nonetheless, she was a daughter of Athena, and she was in charge of the construction of the Olympus. So liking or not, she now had to deal with the prophecy in addition to her other duties. But what Mount of Silver or love gesture had to do with anything, she had no idea.

"It looks like I'm out for a new quest. When will I be leaving?" Annabeth asked while getting to her feet, only to be stopped by a gentle hand on her arm.

"Annabeth." Rachel said quietly, looking at her friend with concern. "The prophecy… it can mean different things. Some of the words may not mean what you think they do."

"I know Rachel, don't worry. I'll be careful." Annabeth knew more than anybody how tricky the Oracle could be. "I really don't want to mess with the Olympus fate." She gave her friend a reassuring smile. Just then Chiron cut in.

"You will be leaving tonight. Go rescue the half-blood and bring her back safe. I'm sorry is has to be so soon, but something doesn't seem quite right, I can feel it." Chiron voice was tinged with apprehension.

"Now go and pack what you need, and please be quick about it… and I guess you are taking Percy and Nico with you, am I right?" He smiled at the girl who smiled back and nodded positively, and walked towards the door.

"Hold on Annabeth."

Rachel ran towards her with a small package in her hands. "A few weeks ago I went to Italy with my parents and I found this. I thought it would suit you so I got it for you."

Annabeth unwrapped the small box and found a small ceramic bottle inside. The bottle was beige and had a picture of Athena in her Roman form on it. It looked like the old ceramic bottles that were used to hold poison in ancient times. The bottle only held eight ounces and was held shut with a cork on the top. Annabeth was touched. She loved it, especially because in modern times, a bottle like this was exceptionally rare. She gave her friend a smile of thanks. 

"Thank you Rachel. It will be my lucky charm for the quest."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

_Special thanks for my beta-reader Cora. Without her you guys would be reading Russian!_

Sei.2405

**The Olympians Fate**

**II – The New Half-Blood**

After talking to Nico and Percy, and explaining everything, they got ready to leave. Annabeth had packed her computer and a few other essentials for the trip. The small bottle that Rachel had given her was placed in the water bottle compartment on the side of the bag. She was wearing a white winter jacket with her bronze knife hidden in her boots. Nico was dressed like a punk rock dude with an oversized black leather jacket, and Percy was wearing his favorite blue-greenish hoodie. They were all gathered at the campfire again.

"Ok guys, problem one-"Annabeth looked at the piece of paper that Chiron had given her on which he had written the words _Boston, MA._

"How are we going to get to Boston? The Pegasus' are refusing to fly in this weather. Problem two; once we arrive in Boston, how are we going to find Grover?"

"Well that's easy." Nico said. Annabeth gave him a quizzical glance.

"Percy will help. He knows what to do."

Percy gave Nico a look that clearly said '_What are you talking about?_ '

"Just call Mrs. O'Leary." The son of Hades said, giving a small sigh of impatience.

"Oh Right! Shadow travel!" Percy whistled and a few seconds later a huge black hellhound jumped on him licking his face.

"All right, all right, I am happy to see you too…" the son of Poseidon moved from underneath the hellhound.

"Mrs. O'Leary we need your help. Can you bring us to Boston to where Grover is?"

"WOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary stood up so the three of them could climb onto her back.

"I hope this is safe." said Annabeth moving to sit in between Percy and Nico.

"Close your eyes and don't open them until we get there."

Percy advised and Nico giggled. After that they disappeared into the shadows.

Grover was standing outside, and slowly freezing to death. He had on his fake human legs covered with a pair of shaggy jeans to hide his satyr form; his red hat was hiding his horns. Even with two jumpers he couldn't stand the cold. The satyr was hiding behind some trees in a small park observing a brunette girl conversing with two strange men.

The first guy was bold and very muscular; he was wearing black leather pants and a black leather vest with big pointing horns coming out of the shoulders. He had a tattoo in the form of a snake crossing over his left eye. The other guy was very tall and very skinny. He had a mohawk and many piercings all around his face. A chain to one of his eyebrow piercings' connected to the bull ring piercing in his nose.

For Grover the whole scene seemed completely wrong. What would a beautiful brunette with amazing blue eyes be doing with guys like that? Seriously, this girl looked like she belonged on the cover of a fashion magazine. She was tall and her long, straight hair was cut in layers with her bangs being just long enough to fall gently into her eyes. She was wearing khaki pants, a simple v-neck white shirt and a dark brown leather jacket, which was currently unzipped. She was skinny but had an athletic build. Though she clearly looked tomboyish, there was a hint of elegance beneath it all. Suddenly Grover heard a noise behind him;

"Owwww! What kind of transportation is that?" Annabeth said getting off of Mrs. O'Leary, rubbing her sore shoulders.

"Come on it's not that bad. Good job Mrs. O'Leary." Percy said, patting the hellhound behind her ears after it laid down for a nap.

"Come on guys, be quiet. We don't want to be found out just now." Grover whispered, motioning the trio over with a wave of his hand. Percy, Nico and Annabeth joined Grover, making sure the group couldn't see or hear them.

"Wow! Who is that girl over there? Juniper is going to get jealous Mr.G!" Percy joked.

Grover playfully smiled back at his friend for a moment, before turning serious again.

"That's Layla, the half-blood I told Chiron about, but I don't know what she is doing. Those guys are the monsters that are after her."

"How come they didn't kill her yet?" Nico asked perplexed about the situation.

"I think we are about to find out." Annabeth pointed towards the group. "Listen. They're talking." And the group strained their ears to listen to the conversation…

"Como on Layla, join us! We need your skills." The skinnier guy said.

"I already told you Kevin, I don't want to be part of your schemes. If you and Rex don't leave me alone you will deeply regret it." The girl said with assurance in her voice. The other guy standing there flushed an angry shade of red.

"Kevin, I am sick of this crap. Let's finish off this arrogant demigod. Even though we were told not to, I'm sure they can find another one." the muscular beast said cracking his neck and knuckles ominously.

"As you wish boss" Kevin replied, also cracking his knuckles as they advanced on the girl standing before them.

"Crap, this doesn't look good." Every muscle in Grover's body was taut and alert from the sheer amount of monster essence that the two punks were emanating.

"I think it is time for action." Percy said while transforming his pen into a bronze sword.

The area around the monsters and Layla was starting to become surrounded by a thick fog. Within a minute, fog covered the entire park area. Annabeth, Nico and Grover agreed with Percy and all of them charged in the direction where Layla was.

What exactly the plan was, Annabeth didn't know yet. Right now the priority was to stay alive. They stopped right behind Layla. Their vision was impaired by the fog, so they couldn't see where the two guys were. Annabeth noticed that Layla didn't move an inch since the evil energy had slowly begun to consume the park. She walked towards the brunette.

"Are you ok?"

Annabeth touched the girls shoulder to catch her attention. The girl turned around and her eyes met Annabeth's. The moment they made contact, Annabeth suddenly felt a sharp pain between her eyes. She fell to her knees and for a split second all she saw was darkness, lightning was striking the blackness, and images of her mom Athena, were being created by each flash of light. The picture was the same one Annabeth saw on the bottle that Rachel had given her. A sudden weight on her shoulder broke Annabeth out of her reverie.

"Hey what's wrong?"

Nico was kneeling beside her with a hand on her shoulder. He looked concerned. Annabeth stared at the girl right in front of her and was shocked to see that she was also kneeling, and now she spoke;

"Who on earth are you guys?" The girl stared at Annabeth's silver eyes and then looked at Nico.

"I don't think we have time for introductions right now." said Percy with his sword in his hands looking towards the two guys, who had now come into view in the midst of the swirling fog.

The first guy had grown twice as tall and strong. He was massive. The veins in his arms and forehead were bulging out to the point of explosion. However what held Percy's main focus was the size of the battle hammer the guy was holding. He could easily smash an _army tank_ with only one swing. The other guy named Kevin had grown bony wings that reminded Percy of bat wings. He was wielding a huge double ball mace.

"Annabeth! Move!" Grover yelled just in time for Annabeth and the brunette to dodge the double mace. The attack left two craters on the ground where the two girls were standing seconds ago.

"We gotta go!" Annabeth yelled. "Percy, get Mrs. O'Leary ready to go! Come on let's move."

Annabeth took the other girl by the arm and started running behind the others in the direction of the trees.

"I don't need your help." Layla said, wrenching her arm from Annabeth's and running right behind the blonde girl.

"Watch out!"

The flying monster was about to lay down another attack on the girls, but the brunette was able to tackle Annabeth out of the way. But now they were separated from the group and ended up further away from their destination.

Layla spotted some large natural rocks in the middle of the park; she looked at Annabeth, and grabbed her arm,

"Come on let's go towards the rocks." They hid behind the rocks wishing that the fog covered them. Their hiding spot could easily be seen, but it was the best they could manage under the circumstances.

"That was a close one! I'm Layla, and I guess you are Annabeth, right?" Layla extended her hand for a handshake. "Sorry about being a bit short with you there-stress makes people irritable."

"I am Annabeth. It's nice to meet you." The blond shook Layla's hand. "We need to find a way to get to the woods. We will bring you to a safe place."

"Hum… I don't usually trust people that I just met, but something is telling me that I should follow you."

Layla got into a crouch and carefully looked over the rocks in the direction of the woods. There she could see Percy and Grover searching for them.

"Alright. The place where your friends are is about fifty meters from here. How good is your sprint?" She asked, lowering herself back behind the rocks once more.

Annabeth looked at her without understanding the question. Layla figured that the blonde didn't understand so she decided to explain the plan.

"That friend of yours… The one in the red cap, he is a satyr right?"

"Yes. How do you–" Annabeth was about to ask, but she was interrupted.

"It's a long story. He was flirting with me a few days ago and suddenly he made a weird goat sound. It was a bit disturbing really. Anyways he explained the situation and told me that he was expecting his friends to come and assist him. I didn't get what he was talking about.

'Coming back to the current circumstances, those guys are after me, so I will distract them while you run for the woods. When you get there ask the satyr to play the highest pitch he can on his wooden thing-I don't know what it's called."

"Hey hey hey, hold on a second!" Annabeth held out a hand to stop the girl, perplexed with she just heard.

"How do you think you going to run away from those guys?" Annabeth was looking at the brunette. "And why high pitch notes?"

"Don't worry about it. I'm covered. Just trust me." Layla pulled her right sleeve up, and looked at Annabeth with assurance in her eyes.

Annabeth saw a silver bracelet with celestial bronze ornaments in the shape of laurel leaves encircling it. Right in the middle, a deep blue sapphire gem was shining brightly, almost blinding her with its dazzling light. She stared at Layla even more confused. Layla smiled a bit, and opened both hands with the palms facing up, and said out loud;

"Excalibur, serve me as your master!"

Blue and silver energy materialized from the bracelet. Annabeth closed her eyes against the sudden flash of light and when she opened them again, a silver sword with celestial bronze edging rested in Layla's hands. The sword was about eighty five centimeters long. The guard, the grip and the pommel were shining silver decorated with celestial bronze laurel leafs. Right in the center of the guard the blue sapphire was shinning just like the bracelet.

Layla smiled at Annabeth, who still looked shocked

"See. I told you I'm covered."

Annabeth tried to respond, but was still utterly speechless. Layla waited a moment before she spoke again to give the blonde a little more time to adjust.

"Ok. On the count of three we go separate ways. Give me some time so I can distract them. Just run straight towards your friends. Ready?" Layla asked, but Annabeth didn't have time to reply; the brunette was already counting.

"One… Two… Three GO!"

Annabeth didn't have time to argue, she just had to trust. She took off like a shot towards the forest where her friends were. Her blonde hair was flying behind ran the opposite way of the woods and yelled trying to catch the monsters attention;

"Hey Kevin, Rex! Come get me if you can you ugly punks!"

As soon as the two monsters charged at Layla, Annabeth used the few seconds of distraction to reach the woods. She was quick to reach Percy, Grover, Nico and Mrs. O'Leary. Once she had reached her destination, she put her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. _"I have to run more often!" _she thought. Her attention turned back to the fight when Percy poked her shoulder;

"You have to see this! Man, she is good! It would be hard to beat her in a battle!"

Annabeth watched Layla fight. It was an amazing sight to behold. She was able to handle the two guys without too much trouble. Of course it wasn't easy, but her agility, power and every single movement was precisely calculated. There was no wasted movement by the brunet. Suddenly a noise rang out through the woods.

BOOM!

Rex had smashed his hammer on the ground, creating an earthquake. Layla fell to the ground and her sword flew from her hands. Rex laughed;

"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Who is going to send who to hell now demigod? I will crush every bone in your body!"

"Stop calling me demi… demi whatever it is! My name is Layla if you didn't learn yet! And remember my name, because one day I will be the one to rip your head off!"

Rex clenched his teeth in fury and got ready to hit the final blow. The three teens were watching helpless, when Annabeth suddenly remembered what Layla had said right before she ran off.

"Grover! I need you to hit the highest pitch you can with your pipe! Fast! No time to explain, just do it!" Annabeth told Grover.

Grover played as hard as he could. The pitch was so high that it made the other three demigods cover their ears in pain. At the same time the monsters yelled like their brains were melting in their skulls. Layla took the opportunity to roll under Rex's legs and charge towards the woods. Grover stopped playing right after Layla joined them.

"Whatever your plan is to take us out of here, it has to be now!" Layla said looking at the monsters that were already recovering and making their way towards the demigods.

"Don't worry. My friend here will take us home safely." Percy said patting the hellhound on the head.

"Oh boy…" Layla gave Mrs. O'Leary a look of apprehension before joining Annabeth, Grover and Percy on top of it. She looked at Nico and asked if he was coming too. Nico blushed.

"Don't worry I can shadow travel by myself." The younger boy said.

"What's shadow-?" Before she could finish her sentence they disappeared into the shadows once again.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

Special thanks for my beta-reader Cora. Without her you guys would be reading Japanese!

_Sei.2405_

**III – Back to Camp Half-Blood**

Mrs. O'Leary landed close to the campfire just a few minutes before dawn. Layla lay sprawled on the ground with one arm on her forehead; she was dizzy after the shadow travel or whatever it was called.

The battle against Kevin and Rex had also drained a large amount of her energy. It wasn't easy to control the powers of Excalibur. She carefully moved her arm away from her eyes. She was still able to see some stars in the grayish light of pre-dawn. She didn't move, but just used her eyes to glance at her surroundings. Layla figured she wasn't near the city anymore.

"Is everything alright?" Startled, Layla looked to her right, where Annabeth was standing and offering a hand to help the brunette stand up. She gladly accepted the help.

"Yeah I am fine, thanks. I'm just a bit dizzy after the ride." She decided to keep the explanation about Excalibur draining her energy a secret for now.

"Maaaan! I hate to travel like that!" Grover said, clearly annoyed. He had already removed his jeans and now looked like a real satyr.

Layla now looked around properly and saw the campgrounds; different cabins were organized in an omega shape with two small buildings standing in the middle. Everywhere she looked, all she could see were trees; she could also hear the ocean. The wind started to blow, causing a light pleasant breeze to blow in her direction. It made her feel a little better.

The wind had this weird power of making her feel more energized but she couldn't explain why. Layla now turned her attention to the four people that had come to her rescue. The younger and slim boy was now back as well, and they were standing a short distance away, talking in low voices.

"Alright guys. I am sorry to interrupt your conversation, but who are you? And what is this place?"

The group stopped talked and looked over at her. Layla moved closer to them. Annabeth took the lead and explained to Layla everything about the camp. The group also introduced themselves and explained the reason why she was brought there. 

"Hold on a second. So you are telling me that one of my parents is a god? A Greek God? That Annabeth you are a daughter of Athena, Percy a son of Poseidon and Nico's dad is Hades, the lord of the underworld? You guys gotta be kidding me."

The brunette sat down on one of the chairs close to the campfire in disbelief. She just couldn't believe it.

"This is all completely true. We would have no reason to lie to you." Annabeth said

'It also explains a little why you have your sword, although I never heard about it before. I don't want to be too intrusive, but who gave that to you? It might give us a clue as to which god is your mother or father."

Annabeth now sat down in the chair beside Layla, who was shaking her head a little

"I don't know who gave me the sword. I have this bracelet on me since I was a baby… at least that's what the couple who adopted me said."

The three demigods and the satyr exchanged significant looks.

"Oh don't feel bad." – Layla said misinterpreting their silence.

"I had a really great time with them. But they died two years ago, they were elderly. They were like grandparents y'know?" She laughed a little, but she suddenly felt inexplicably sad. The others picked up on it.

"I'm really sorry about your guardians." Percy said "But hey, you have some serious fighting skills!" He tried to change the subject.

"Where did you learn them? Have you fought monsters before? What's the name of your sword? How do you unleash it?" He was so excited that he couldn't stop talking. Everything was coming out in a big rush of words.

"Percy come on! Give the girl a break! She just got here." Annabeth threw him a dirty look.

"It's alright, I don't mind."

Layla smiled kindly at Annabeth, which made the silver-eyed girl blush and look away shyly.

"I learned about swordsmanship when I was very young. I officially started practicing when I was eight. It was about the same time when Excalibur first appeared to me." Layla looked at the bracelet and touched in an affectionate way.

"My guardians were worried about something. When I was growing up, they always told me I should be prepared; they said I was different and I would have to face tough decisions in the future. At first I thought they were just being worried parents, but now after what you told me, I guess I now know what they meant. Maybe they always knew who I was. I started to fight monsters as soon as my parents died. They were appearing from out of nowhere. Many of them asked me to join them like Rex and Kevin, as soon as I said no they tried to kill me…"

Layla stopped talking when Grover brought her some hot-chocolate. She thanked him, and stared at the steam being pushed away by the wind.

A few minutes passed. It was getting a bit warmer, the sun had come out and it was now touching the fields of Camp-Half-Blood. There was a pleasant silence amongst the group. Annabeth somehow felt a little bad for Layla, but she still had one last question.

"So Layla," Annabeth looked at the girl that still hadn't **t**ouched her hot chocolate. The girl looked at her as if startled out of her thoughts.

"Do you know the reason why the monsters wanted you to join them?"

"No. They never said. The only thing that was common with all of them was that they told me their master had sent them."

The group stopped talking when they sensed someone coming towards them. It was Chiron on his wheel chair.

"I see you guys have come back earlier than expected. Why don't all of you follow me to my cabin."

Layla looked at Annabeth, searching for an approval sign. Annabeth nodded slightly and they all went with Chiron.

At the cabin Chiron introduced himself and heard from the group what had happened. Annabeth asked Layla to tell Chiron everything that happened. The blue-eyed girl told him her story, starting from when she was adopted, until the recent happenings.

"Would you mind if I see your bracelet?" Chiron asked Layla.

Layla pulled up her right sleeve and moved her arm so Chiron could see the bracelet closely.

"I would be glad to take it off for you, but I still don't know how to do it." Layla said. She felt a little embarrassed admitting that, and could feel a faint blush appear on her cheeks.

Chiron widened his eyes for a split second when he saw the bracelet, but a split second later he resumed a neutral expression. He lifted his gaze and stared straight into Layla's eyes.

"My dear," He said in a warming and soft voice,

"A bracelet like this won't be easily removed. It's like it has a mind of its own." Chiron smiled at the girl without taking his eyes away from Layla's. "I think we still have much to find out about you."

Layla pulled her arm back and dropped her sleeve, covering Excalibur. Annabeth looked at Chiron as she had many questions to ask him. She knew the centaur was hiding something and she wanted to know what, but it wasn't the right time to ask it yet.

Chiron dismissed the group and told them to rest until lunchtime. He also asked Annabeth to show Layla the entire camp after they had lunch.

"Oh Annabeth," Chiron called before she left the cabin. "Layla will be staying at the Athenian cabin with you. It's for safety reasons."

"Chiron, are you sure? What about the camp rules? She wasn't claimed yet…"

"It will be fine. Trust me she will be better off there."

Annabeth gave Chiron a suspicious look, but then left the cabin, jogging a little to catch up to her friends. After they left Chiron made his way towards a book-shelf and got a book from it. The book was covered in dust as if it had not been opened for centuries. He placed the book on the table and ran his hand on the cover pushing some dust away. A picture of a sword was revealed;

"Olympus fate…" The centaur said in a low voice as he stared at the sword's image.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

Special thanks for my beta-reader Cora. Without her you guys would be reading anything other than english!

_Sei.2405_

**IV – Lightning and Darkness**

Annabeth led Layla to the Athenian cabin. Annabeth showed Layla around and introduced her to the few sons and daughters of Athena that were attending camp at the moment. She also told Layla that she could take the bed that was right across from hers. Annabeth gave Layla a pair of grey warm up pants and a hoodie so she could change, and rest for a little bit. While she was changing, the daughter of Athena excused herself to use the bathroom.

Annabeth turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face. After using her towel to dry her face, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her silver eyes were glowing; _I look awful. Well I think is expected after last night._

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Annabeth stared at her image again and the conversation she had had with Layla on the way to the cabin came to her mind…

_They were passing in front of the cabins and Annabeth was explaining to Layla about how the structure and placement of the people within them worked._

"_So you mean that every demigod- sorry I mean half-blood, inherits a characteristic or special ability of their godly parent?"_

"_Correct." Annabeth replied while lifting a hand in greeting to some campers that passed by._

"_Your eyes" Layla said "they are silver…" she felt a little uncomfortable saying it._

"_Yes they are." Annabeth smiled at the brunette._

"_I mean they are beautiful, they truly are." Layla stared so intensely at Annabeth, that she made the blond blush. To cover up her embarrassment, Annabeth prattled on._

"_Well my eyes are a gift from my mother. Not all Athenian kids have it, but it is a very special trait…" Annabeth trailed off when she saw that Layla was staring at the floor like something was bothering her._

"_Annabeth" Layla paused for a moment before continuing on_

"_When you are around normal people, and by normal I mean regular human beings, with your eyes… they don't seem to be bothered by their unusual color? People aren't scared or suspicious?" Layla stared at Annabeth again, but this time Annabeth could catch a little sadness in her expression._

"_Well as you may already know, surrounding all humans is something called 'The Mist.' The Mist hides everything from the human eyes, so in this circumstance they only see my eyes as regular hazelnut eyes. However, there are humans that are able to see through the Mist but they are rare exceptions. In the end I never have to worry about it." She was kindly smiling at Layla, who was still gazing at her with the same intense look as earlier. _

"_It's a shame that they can't see how beautiful they are." Layla said making Annabeth blush even more than before._

Annabeth shook her head wildly, trying to clear the memory. She was blushing again, much to her dismay. Just the thought of the blue eyed girl looking at her and saying how beautiful her eyes were; it was enough to cause her cheeks to glow pink again-"_Come on Annabeth, get a grip! She was just being polite. Yeah she was simply being nice, that's all". _ She told herself while making her way back to the cabin, and the nice cozy bed that was waiting for her.

When she made her way into the main sleeping area, she couldn't help but look over at Layla. She was lying on her bed, already fast asleep. She looked completely different asleep. Annabeth went to the closet and grabbed a heavy blanket. She walked towards Layla and carefully covered her with the blanket.

It was an unseasonably cold morning for November. _Oh Mr. D is so going to hear about this…_ Annabeth silently promised._ But now is not the time._ She checked on Layla once again. _She is so beautiful; even the daughters of Aphrodite would surely agree. _She suddenly became aware that she was staring at the sleeping girl.

_Alright Annabeth snap out of it! Now is not the time to be daydreaming. There are much more important things at stake!_ She scolded herself, rubbing her temples in an almost violent fashion. "I think I need some sleep myself. I'm obviously not thinking clearly." She mumbled to herself.

Annabeth quietly climbed into her own bed and moved around until she found a comfortable place on her bed to have a well deserved nap.

It took Layla only a few moments to fall asleep after hitting her head on the pillow. That fight had drained her of most of her energy, and the shadow travel did nothing to help her regain any of it back. As soon as she fell asleep she found herself in a weird dream.

_ At first Layla was in her house. All the lights were turned off, and her adopted mom was sitting by the couch in the living room. All Layla could see was her shadow flickering on the wall behind where the lighted candle sat in the middle of the table. Layla approached tentatively._

"_Mom?"_

_As soon as Layla got closer to the woman, her mom turned around. She reached out with lightning speed to grasp both of her arms tightly, before starting to shake her violently. She spoke in an oddly rasping voice._

"_Your eyes; never show anyone your eyes. My poor baby, never show them…" _

_ The house suddenly started to shake. The walls started crumbling around them and when the ceiling was about to collapse on Layla, she held her arms up in front of her face to protect herself from the impact. A few moments passed. She carefully moved her arms, and she found herself in another place. _

_ Now Layla was on the top floor of a skyscraper; the wind was blowing in a furious dance. She cautiously made her way to the edge of the building and looked down. She saw New York City spread out before her, all looming under a dark thundercloud. All the lights were off, and all she could hear were the sounds of the waves, massive ones crashing loudly against the shore and invading the city. The storm was very fierce and wild. Thunder boomed aggressively loud and lightning bolts were rapidly striking the city. She looked around, and among the flashes of light created by the lightning she could see the mass amount of buildings in ruins. _

"_What is going on? Why are all the buildings ruined?" She asked herself. Layla could feel a growing sense of panic rising within her._

_ It was at about this time that she registered the weight of Excalibur, which was now unleashed in her hands. Layla looked around and figured that the building she stood on was, in fact, the Empire State building. Feeling a sudden wetness on her hands, she lifted up her right hand and could see that her hands and Excalibur where soaked in blood tinged with red and gold. _

_ She stepped back in alarm, and almost tripped over something hard. Looking down, she could see spread out below her on the floor four human bodies splayed out, looking very still. She knelt down for a closer look, and to her horror she recognized three of them. Layla saw with clarity, the definitely lifeless bodies of Percy, Nico and Annabeth, her dear friends. _

_ Layla gave a loud, sobbing gasp, dropping Excalibur in her despair. She looked around for an exit, but she couldn't find one. Layla could feel herself growing numb with shock. She simply couldn't think straight anymore. _

_ Then suddenly from a random point on the wall a door opened. A person with a long black hooded vest that was covering his entire body appeared in front of her. She didn't even look up at first, but a strong force compelled her to look up. All she could see was a pair of demonic red eyes staring at her. They seemed to be looking into her soul with their searing glance. Layla felt pain beyond anything she had ever felt whip right through her. She screamed in agony. The evil, demonic being started laughing in a satisfactory way, as he cupped her face in his hands. He spoke in a voice of pure malice._

"_Well done my child. Well done indeed."_

_ Layla panicked, she couldn't move. She was nearly blinded by the pain, and that strong evil presence had caught her_. _His face loomed closer and closer to her, but then she felt a sharp tug as her conscious awoke._

Layla nearly fell out of bed, and caught herself at the last second, sitting down at once. She was breathing hard and coated in a sheen of cold sweat. Even worse, she realized she was holding something with a near death grip in her right hand.

"Ouch! Layla are you alright? I was just trying to wake you up, it's about lunchtime."

It was Annabeth. Layla felt a wave of relief wash over her. She released her death grip from Annabeth's wrist. The blonde rubbed the place Layla had grabbed.

"Powerful hands you have there hum?" Annabeth tried to smooth over the situation with an attempt at humor. She could see that Layla was not doing very well.

"I am so sorry." Layla apologized, feeling embarrassed about what she had done. "I didn't mean to hurt you." She sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing her eyes.

"It's alright. Don't need to worry about it. We've all had nightmares at one point, right?" Annabeth said. She carefully sat down beside the brunette, suddenly feeling a little awkward. Somehow every time she was close to Layla she found herself at a loss of words, and that did not happen too often to her.

After a few moments, Layla stood up and stretched, giving Annabeth a small smile.

"I suppose we all have weird dreams sometimes." She was now looking around trying to find her clothes and rubbing her left eye that was really bothering her.

"Oh right. You need your clothing!" Annabeth had quickly realized what the blue eyed girl was looking for. She went over to her bed and got Layla's clothes and handed them to her. They were all clean and folded.

Layla looked at her favorite leather jacket. It was special to her. It was a memento left from her real mother. Other than the jacket, she didn't have anything else from her mother. Not even memories. She checked the pockets looking for something, after a moment of panic, her hands closed around the object she was looking for and Layla gave a small sigh of relief as she pulled it out of her pocket.

Annabeth was just observing the brunette; she saw that she now held a small plastic bottle in her hands.

"Eye drops?" Annabeth asked in confusion. "That's a weird thing to carry on you."

Layla turned to Annabeth still rubbing her left eye.

"Yeah. I wouldn't survive without this little thing." She gave it to Annabeth to check it out.

Annabeth had seen the girl rubbing her left eye, but just now she realized how red the white of her left eye was. She gave Layla back the small bottle, and watched her put a small drop of it on her eye.

"That's all you need? One tiny drop?"

"Yep, that's it." Layla smiled. "What's more interesting is that I have had this same eye drop container since…" She stopped to think, "Well, since I can remember! It never seems to get empty. My adopted mom gave it to me."

"That's crazy." Annabeth said surprised. "So put your clothes on. I will be waiting for you outside the cabin."

"All right boss! I will be right there. Don't leave me behind, 'cause if you do I might get lost and become hellhound lunch!"

Both of them started laughing as Annabeth made her way outside.

**Author note:** Hey guy, how is everyone doing? I hope you are enjoying the fiction! Things are starting to happen, I am getting very excited and I hope you are as well! Next chapter a lot more action will happen and soon we will get to the climax of the fiction! As much as I like to write this fiction for you, I also would love to get some reviews! Reviews are important for the authors to keep them improving their writing (specially for me who has English as a second language) and even the content of the fiction! Please leave some reviews it only takes a second and I would really really really appreciate! Have a good weekend!

Love you 3 =)  
>Sei.2405<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

Special thanks for my beta-reader Cora. Without her you guys would be reading Thai!

_Sei.2405_

**V- Chaos and Findings**

Annabeth and Layla walked together to the dinning cabin. Most of the campers were already sitting down and eating their lunches. They paused for a moment in front of the main entrance; Layla saw that Nico and Percy were sitting alone and at separate tables. She wanted to ask Annabeth the reason for that, but as soon as she opened her mouth to speak, they were spotted.

The campers had started to stare at them and now began whispering amongst themselves. Layla could feel her face heating up, but because she was used to being the target of local gossip, she quickly regained her composure. Annabeth ignored the whispers and proceeded to lead Layla towards the main table where Chiron was seated beside Grover. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Percy vacate his table and leave the building.

"Come on. Let's go." Annabeth said to the brunette, tugging on her wrist, shaking her out of her thoughts.

They passed through the seemingly endless row of tables. Layla could hear the boys gossiping about her appearance and how beautiful she was and they were beginning to take bets to see if she really was a daughter of Aphrodite. On the other side of the room at the Aphrodite table she heard them saying how boyish she was, though they all seemed to agree that she was fairly attractive.

Layla actually felt a little sick. Her entire life she had been spoiled by strangers because of her looks. She knew she was boyish but she didn't care. It was actually something she was proud of. _'Be who you are and don't show your weaknesses.'_ That was something her foster dad had always told her. She believed him and carried that belief with her to this very day.

After what seemed like an eternity (but was in reality only about a minute), they finally reached Chiron's table. Annabeth asked Chiron where Layla should sit, and Chiron told Annabeth to bring her to the Athenian table for the time being. At that statement all the campers became silent for a moment, Layla felt as lost as a blind person caught in the middle of a cross fire. But even in this situation Layla kept calm and cool. She thanked Chiron and followed Annabeth to the table where she took a seat right beside her friend.

While they were eating, Layla could still sense the curious stares. At first she tried to ignore it, but very soon she couldn't ignore them any longer. She dropped her silverware with a loud clank onto the table.

"Alright, so what's the big deal with me sitting here?" Layla asked Annabeth.

"It's because you haven't been claimed yet." Annabeth then proceeded to explain to her all about how half-bloods have to sit at their family's table as a form of respect.

"And when am I supposed to be claimed?" Layla's tone was dripping with disdain. She was volatile; she felt unstable and it worried her.

"It usually happens when you are thirteen. If not then, it happens when you pass through the gates of Camp Half-blood or sometimes it doesn't happen until the campfire at night. Don't worry you will know your true origin by tonight." Annabeth took the last sip of her drink, while Layla sat with her food untouched. After a few moments, Annabeth stood up.

"Are you ready for another tour?"

"Sure." Layla said, pushing her food aside. "Where are we going now?" Layla suddenly felt much better. She almost felt a little excited. _Wow. I'm going through lots of different moods today. I'd better be careful._

"What do you think about the arena?"

"The arena is fine with me. I'll go wherever you would like to go."

"Good. Then it's settled then."

The two girls stood up and grabbed their plates. After depositing them in the kitchen they left the dining hall without a backward glance.

They headed straight to the arena, stopping only when Annabeth pointed out an important building or two. The weapons house, for instance, was located just a few buildings down from the dining hall.

When they reached the arena Layla saw to her amazement, what looked like a completely accurate replica of the Coliseum. Many campers were already using the space; most of them practicing with swords or javelins and shields. Right in the middle of the arena they spotted Percy fighting with a camper. They walked towards them to watch it closer. It was a very quick fight. Within seconds Percy had the other boy disarmed and held his own sword an inch from the boy's throat.

"Wow, he is good." Layla said, supposedly to herself, but Annabeth heard her.

"Yeah he is. Unfortunately, Percy is the best swordsman among us, which is very disappointing because he is very irresponsible, and he thinks he's so superior. Honestly! The boy needs to grow-up." Annabeth's tone was bitter.

As soon as Percy saw the two girls approaching, he helped the boy to stand up and thanked him. After that he rushed towards his friends.

"Annabeth, Layla! How are you? Did you girls enjoy your nap?"

"It was short." Layla spoke in a very cutting tone to convey the message that she didn't want to talk about it.

"I see you are not tired at all Percy." Annabeth said in mock disdain. "It's only midday and you're already showing off." She raised an eyebrow in disapproval.

"Oh come on! After watching Layla fighting the other night I felt like coming her to have some fun." He suddenly became excited.

"Hey Layla what do you think? Are you up for some sparring?" Percy was clearly fired up and he grabbed a suit of armor and handed it to the brunette without waiting for an answer.

Layla looked at the armor and then at Annabeth.

"I don't think so…"

"Oh come on! Just a quick one, it won't take long. I'll have you beat in a mere instant." Percy said. His tone was challenging and Layla picked up on it.

She gave Percy a quick nod, and the brunette dropped the armor on the floor and retrieved a sword from the sword rack nearby. Her blood was boiling. Layla was normally very patient, but she couldn't tolerate somebody daring her to do something she didn't want to do or looking down on her like she was less than a person. That was exactly what Percy did whether he intended to or not.

"Layla, this really is not a good idea. He's just goading you. Ignore him! It's what I usually do." Annabeth was more than a little concerned for Layla. The brunette turned and gave Annabeth an intense look.

"Don't worry about it. It's just like Percy said… this won't take long."

They were already into it. Annabeth could see in their eyes and feel the charged atmosphere. Percy looked at Layla who was already into fight mode.

"You are not going to use your own sword?" He asked, raising a questionable eyebrow.

"No. My sword is only used for special occasions. This isn't one of those times."

They began walking in slow, tight circles analyzing each other's movements and searching for weaknesses. Percy couldn't believe it. He was not able to find any openings in Layla's form. Clearly she had some exceptional training.

He decided to charge right in and let the fight flow. He attacked Layla and was instantly blocked. The noise of the swords making contact was so loud that it caused all the campers around them to look over at the sound. Seeing who was fighting, they all dropped their weapons and surrounded the fighting duo in a large circle.

_Whoa. Annabeth wasn't kidding. He's strong. _Layla thought, her arms straining to hold off Percy's attack.

_Well I can sense this fight won't be as easy as I had thought. Better switch tactics with this one. _Percy told himself. He pulled back and retreated to the edge of the circle to regroup.

The fight went on for a few minutes. Every move the duo made was even more amazing than the previous one. Percy's next attack pushed Layla back. The impact was so powerful that dirt came of the ground, and impaired their vision as it swirled around them. When Layla was able to see through the cloud of dirt, she saw a younger girl with short blond hair in front of her. The girl must have tripped on a weapon lying on the ground, because she was holding her foot with a look of pain on her face.

"Percy! Stop!" Annabeth yelled, already discerning the severity of the situation, but it was too late. Percy was already on the move; he wouldn't be able to stop in the middle of his attack.

Quick as a flash, Layla dropped her practice sword and charged forward, holding out her bracelet.

"Excalibur! Serve me as your master!" and the brilliant sword suddenly appeared in her hands. The energy emanating from the sword blinded every camper with a searing brightness that caused them to close their eyes against the harsh whiteness.

After a moment, the brightness faded and everyone opened their eyes to see something unbelievable. Percy was lying on the floor with a sword pointed at his chest. The shorthaired girl was crouched behind Layla away from the danger. Both Layla and Percy were breathing hard. The brunette moved the sword away from Percy's chest and Excalibur materialized back into bracelet mode. Layla turned around and helped the girl to stand up.

"Are you alright?" The brunette asked. "You're safe now." Layla tried to sound kind.

The younger girl was terrified and trembling. She whispered an apology for her inconvenience and quickly excused herself. Layla turned back to Percy and helped him to stand up. The crowd around them slowly dispersed. _Oh this is just lovely. I scared her off. Great job Layla._

"How did you do that?" Percy asked astonished. "That move… it was wicked fast and you had only a small chance of stopping that attack. How-"

"Let's just say I was lucky." Layla smiled at him.

"No, you are really amazing! You cannot call that luck! Even I, Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon don't have the ability to do something like that." He kept up the tirade until a furious Annabeth interrupted him.

"Percy! You should know better than that! You could have killed somebody!"

"Relax Annabeth! Nothing happened!" He replied cautiously. "I was just showing Miss Layla here how to spar. Obviously she doesn't need any lessons!" he laughed at his own cleverness. It made Annabeth want to scream at him.

Layla was standing to one side and observing the quarrel between her two friends, when from nowhere a sharp pain struck her head. Her vision went blurry. The pain was unbearable. She fell to her knees, crying out in agony.

Layla could barely hear Annabeth and Percy calling her name. A pair of glowing demonic eyes filled her vision, and she began to hear the ghost of the laugh from her dreams. Images flew through her head; Annabeth and Percy's bodies lying lifeless on the floor. The laugh stopped and she could now hear the same evil voice whispering inside her head;

'_Grow stronger! Destroy everyone and everything precious in your life. Ha-ha-ha-ha.'_

The voice faded and the pain started to subside. After a few moments Layla could hear Annabeth's voice again;

"Somebody bring a son of Apollo here, fast!"

Layla could feel how worried Annabeth was. The blue-eyed girl managed to open her eyes and gather some energy.

"Annabeth. I am fine. Don't worry." She sat on the floor and took a deep breath, trying to make her vision come back to normal, which was taking longer than she wanted.

"Um, you just collapsed on us. Of course we're going to worry." Percy said, looking at the girl and to Annabeth subsequently. "You look very pale…"

"I'm alright. I just got a little dizzy…" She managed to give a weak smile that didn't convince Annabeth in the least. Annabeth turned to Percy.

"Alright, you heard Layla. She's fine. So let's go back to the cabin, but not you Percy. Since you were the one who started this whole mess, _you_ get to clean it up."

Annabeth indicated the arena, which was now full of abandoned weaponry as everyone quickly exited the area; no doubt off to inform the rest of the camp of the epic fight they had just witnessed.

"Oh come on Annabeth…" Percy trailed off when he saw the expression on Annabeth's face. It was downright scary, even by his standards. After a tense moment he acquiesced.

"Fine. Fine." He grumbled. "Oh Layla; thanks for today. I hope you feel better. And good luck with Annabeth!" He gestured towards Annabeth, who was standing there with her arms crossed looking very angry indeed.

"Sure…" Layla said. She gave Percy a look of confusion as she carefully stood up. She was still a little dizzy and her head was pounding as if she had a headache. Percy said his goodbyes and started to clean the arena, all the while mumbling to himself about the unfairness of it all.

Annabeth now came to stand in front of Layla. She still looked livid. She glared at the brunette. Layla winced at the sudden stab of pain, and suddenly Annabeth softened her expression, as she remembered what had just transpired.

"Come on, let's go. You can use my shoulder if you want." The daughter of Athena said. The faintest hint of a blush appeared on her cheeks. "I mean… If you need to that is."

"T-Thank you." Layla said now blushing as well; she was grateful for Annabeth's assistance.

They walked back to the cabin in silence. Once inside the threshold, Layla took a seat on the bed she was sleeping in. Annabeth stood in front of her with her arms crossed in front of her chest and a serious expression on her face. Layla instantly felt ashamed and avoided the other girl's gaze.

"So… are you going to tell me what the heck happened back there, or am I going to have to find out myself? Because you know that the daughters of Athena are among the smartest human beings on earth. So you can tell me or not, but be advised that I will find out eventually, and it would be better for both of us If I know now."

Layla swallowed hard. Annabeth could be extremely intimidating and persuasive when she wanted to. Layla had an internal struggle for a moment, but in the end Layla decided to tell Annabeth everything.

Time seemed to become non-existent as Layla told Annabeth about how Excalibur drained her energy, and about the dream she had had about the strange person with the red eyes and the blood on her hands. She decided to omit the part about the visions of the death of Annabeth and her friends. She did, however, tell the daughter of Athena what happened after the fight with Percy.

"Hmm…that's very interesting."

Annabeth looked deep in thought for a moment. Layla gently put a hand on her shoulder and the other girl shook her head suddenly and flashed Layla a bright smile.

"But you don't have to worry about anything. We will find out what's going on really soon. However, what intrigues me the most right now is your sword. If we could find out more about it, we may be able to find out why this guy with red eyes is after you."

Layla lay back on her bed and closed her eyes. "I wish I knew more myself…"

Suddenly Layla felt something cold on her forehead. She opened her eyes and saw Annabeth's face looming right above her own. It was so unexpected that she found herself gasping for a breath, as her heart began pounding loudly in her ears. The daughter of Athena had her right hand on Layla's forehead. Layla blushed from being so close to the other girl. _What's going on here? Why am I blushing? _

"Oh dear, you are running a fever. I will get you some medicine." Annabeth slowly stood up and walked away. A moment later, Layla could feel her heart calming down and she let out the breath she had been holding.

Meanwhile, Annabeth went to her nightstand. _Oh for Athena's sake! What the heck did I just do? Get a grip! _Annabeth thought while grabbing a bottle of Aleve and a glass of water to give to Layla. She took a deep breath to regain her composure. When she approached Layla's bed, she smiled warmly at the girl as if nothing had happened.

"Here we go." She handed the water and the pills to Layla. "You stay here and rest. I have some stuff to do, but I will be back soon to see how you're doing. If you're really feeling bad, just head up to the dining hall. There's always someone there."

"So half-bloods also keep Aleve with them." Layla joked.

"Well they do come in handy about once a month, if you know what I mean."Annabeth chuckled softly. Layla smiled and shook her head slightly.

"Hey thanks again." The brunette took the pills and placed the glass of water on the night table beside her bed. "You don't need to worry about me, Miss Daughter of Athena. I will be fine." She flashed Annabeth a smile.

"You're welcome." Annabeth walked towards the door, with a ghost of smile still on her lips.

"By the way..." Layla stopped the blonde before she closed the door. "You look much better with a smile on."

Annabeth looked back and felt her face burning. "Thanks. Get some rest now." she quietly closed the cabin door behind her.

Layla woke up to the sounds of voices outside the cabin. She yawned and stretched. After a moment she got out of bed and put on her leather jacket and made her way outside. Layla heard more voices coming from the campfire which she saw flickering in the distance. Judging from the darkened sky, Layla figured she had been asleep for at least a few hours.

She followed some campers who were also headed towards the fire, and when she got closer she saw most of the camp was gathered together. Many campers were talking jovially amongst themselves. Some satyrs were playing music, while other campers were sitting by the fire drinking hot-chocolate. The atmosphere was warm and inviting. Layla approached the group tentatively, looking for Annabeth and the others. After a moment, she located Chiron and headed towards him.

Chiron was now in his centaur form; his white stallion bottom was covered by a red blanket and he was wearing a green sweater with snow flakes on it. It reminded Layla of her adopted parents, and when they wore their old Christmas sweaters; she couldn't help but smile at it.

Chiron was in the middle of a conversation with Annabeth, it looked serious so she decided not to interfere. At the opposite side of the fire from where Chiron was talking to Annabeth, she spotted Percy and Nico. She decided to go and join the two of them for the time being. Percy grinned and waved at Layla as she approached them.

"Hey. how are you doing Layla? Annabeth told us you had a fever. Are you feeling better?" Percy welcomed her.

"Yeah, thanks. I'm doing much better actually." Layla replied, rubbing her hands together for warmth. It was actually pretty chilly outside.

"Would you like some hot-chocolate?" Nico offered.

"No thanks. I am not a big fun of sweets, other than gummy bears."

"Oooh gummy bears! I haven't had those since I was a kid." Percy had such a comical look on his face that the other two couldn't help but laugh.

The trio started talking about random things. Percy made fun of Nico with the girl from the Aphrodite cabin, while Nico blamed Percy for almost killing the poor girl during the fight with Layla. They all laughed together for a few minutes.

Suddenly, storm clouds started to gather above the area of Camp-Half-Blood. The campers looked up in alarm at the clouds that were starting to unleash thunder and lightning amongst the cold, whipping wind that sprang up. Many campers were beginning to back away in fright. Chiron announced to the campers not to panic and to remain calm.

Layla's hair was flying everywhere; brunet strands were hitting her face. Through the mess she saw Annabeth staring at her with a serious face. The wind subsided for a moment, and then out of nowhere a lightning bolt struck from the sky headed straight towards Layla.

The girl threw her arms in front of her face and hunched down trying to protect herself, but it was too late. Layla knew she was done for. However, instead of pain, all she felt was numbness. After a moment she felt small tingles in her body as if there was an electric chain running through her. She put her arms down and stood up straight checking to see if she was all right.

A light in her peripheral vision caught her attention. She looked down at her bracelet. The sapphire in the middle was glowing intensely. It almost looked like the lightning had ignited the bracelet. She lifted her head towards Chiron waiting for an explanation. The centaur stopped in front of Layla, placed his hands on her shoulders and smiled at her.

"Well. I think I was mistaken for once." He said, making Layla feel even more confused.

"We just found out who your godly parent is." Chiron backed up a bit and gave the girl a little space.

Layla raised an eyebrow at him, and stared at her bracelet. Then she looked at the sky which was now cloud free. Comprehension dawned on her and her eyes went wide with shock. After a moment she began to speak.

"Are you serious? There is no way- please don't tell me that my dad is Zeus." She gazed up at the sky again. A loud thunderclap rang out.

"You are correct my child." The centaur said.

_

Hey guys! How is everyone doing? Having a great beginning of week? Here is the last chapter I have ready for now, I hope you guys enjoyed! I will be anxious to hear from you what you thought about it! Please leave a review it only takes a few seconds! Thanks a lot once again I cant wait for the reviews! Have a great weekend!

xoxo Sei.2405


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

**Author's note:** Hey guys I am back! Im really sorry it took a while for me to show up again. My beta reader has not reviewed this chapter so it might be a little tough for you guys to read. I apologize for that, but I thought it would be nice to post something! And it is a short chapter but I will be updating again this week! Have fun!

SEI.2405

**VI – Is that a bad move?**

Almost two weeks had passed since Layla got to Camp Half-Blood. In those two weeks so much had happened; Layla discovered an entire new reality that she wasn't aware of and that she was a daughter of Zeus, which scared her to death.

After Layla was claimed as Zeus's daughter she ended up moving to the cabin designated to his child, what made it difficult for Layla to spend time with Annabeth. For the past week she had barely seen the daughter of Athena; or Annabeth was busy doing something for Olympus in her laptop or she was stuck in Chiron's cabin for long meetings. Layla tried her best not to care about it by spending long hours practicing the sword with Percy or helping Nico to take care of Mrs. O'Leary. Furthermore, after her little spare with Percy a few days ago, many campers came to them asking for swordsmanship instructions. That led Chiron to appoint both of them as 'temporary instructors;" Layla interpreted that as a way of keeping them out of trouble.

It was around two o'clock in the afternoon, Layla was lying on her improvised bed in Zeus's cabin doing nothing; that afternoon Percy was the one in charge of the swords lesson and said she could take a break. The cabin was empty and dull; there were no beds other than hers and one more across the hall. Layla had no idea whose bed was that.

The brunet with blue eyes was bored to death. She wished she had some of her stuff with her. Unfortunately other then her body clothes and some other pieces Annabeth had borrowed her she had nothing.

"Alright! I need to go talk to Chiron and ask permission to go back home to get some of my belongings. This cabin is to depressing…"She stood up and stared at the statue of Zeus right in front of her. "No offences dad." She apologized and made her way out.

Layla was about to knock on Chiron's front door when she heard voices coming from inside. Instantly she could recognize Annabeths voice followed by Chiron's and Percy's.

"You cannot do that Chiron! If you are right about what we found out things will become much more complicated!" Annabeth shouted while hitting her hands aggressively on the table.

"My dear, there is no other way to it. This might be our only chance to find out the truth." The centaur replied.

"Annabeth, don't worry it will be fine." Percy assured.

"Furthermore, neither I have a saying on that." A edge of worry was noticeable on Chiron's voice, "It is a direct order from Olympus… And they demand you, Percy and Layla on this quest."

"But why Layla ? She just got here! And I don't think it is a good idea since the entire monster community is after her…" Annabeth was interrupted by the noise of the front door being opened...

"I am going." Layla said walking inside the cabin. She had a serious expression on he face and was starring intensely at Annabeth. "I actually can use this opportunity to get some of my stuff at home, it will work out perfectly!" She was now smiling kindly at the daughter of Athena.

"So it is set! The three of you are leaving tomorrow, early morning." Chiron said in a satisfactory way.

Annabeth hit her fist on the table once again and rushed outside the cabin bumping into Layla on the way out.

"What's wrong with her?" the brunet asked Percy and Chiron, both shake their head as of 'i have no idea.'

/

Annabeth couldn't be more furious; if she had something in her hands she would probably crush it into pieces. She decided to head towards the cliff to calm down a little bit. She sat by a rock near by and rested her head on her hands. The wind was blowing softly; she raised her head and stared at the ocean shore in front of her.

"Annabeth…" – She heard a familiar voice calling her. "Do you mind if I join you?"

The blond stared at Layla's friendly smile and turned her attention back to the waves that were hitting the shore. "Sure," she replied in a calmer tone.

The brunet took a seat by the grass near Annabeth; she sat in a leisurely way, leaning back and putting her body weight on her elbows. Layla closed her eyes for feel seconds and felt the gentle wind blowing.

"This is a nice place…"

"Yeah…" Annabeth's answer was followed by seconds of silence.

"So… humm… What is going on?"- Layla turned her glance towards Annabeth, but the blond did reply. "Come on Annabeth, what's the problem?" Again there was no answer, Layla finally gave up; she stood up, put her hands on her front pockets and began to walk away.

"Do you wanna know the story behind Excalibur?"

Layla stopped by the sound of Annabeth's voice.

"What do you mean?" The brunet turned around to face the daughter of Athena that was now standing with the wind blowing her hair from behind and covering part of her sad expression.

"I am asking if you wanna know it or not?"

Layla stood still for a moment and made her way towards Annabeth. She smiled gently and placed her right hand on Annabeth's cheek. She stared at the blond's silver eyes, finally she retreated her hand and stared at Excalibur that was on her wrist.

"No… I don't. I am not quite sure if it is the right time yet."

"That's what I thought…" Annabeth turned once again in the direction of the cliff. "Maybe if you knew it you would change your mind about going to this quest."

"Annabeth… I…" Layla tried to explain.

"I know… You want to find out by yourself right?"

"Yes, exactly." Layla smiled. "And I don't want you to worry about me, everything is gonna be just fine."

/

Layla couldn't fall asleep that night. The fact that Annabeth already knew something about Excaibur and she didn't was frustrating. However, better than anybody else, Layla knew that it wasn't the time to find out yet. She didn't want anything holding her back if she had to take action. Furtehrmore, she had other priorities on the top of her "worrying list".

Morning finally came; the faint sun light was already out when Layla met with Percy and Annabeth by the arena entrance; both of them were wearing heavy ski jackets, Layla looked at them with a confused expression.

"Good morning. I didn't know we were going ski." Layla said with a playful smile.

"Oh, good morning." Percy replied while finishing tying his shoes. "You didn't hear? Last night the north was smashed by a huge snow storm. They said it its suppose to snow at least for the next three days non stop."

"Really? I didn't know about it…" Replied the brunet while starring at Annabeth that was kneeling on the floor finishing to check her backpack. "Good morning Annabeth… Nice bottle you have over there…" Layla tried to start a conversation with the daughter of Athena.

"Good morning." Annabeth replied coldly. "Thanks. So… Lets go?" She finished checking her backpack ad now was placing her bronze knife on her armband.

"Yeah, lets go…" replied Percy "our ride is just getting here."

The three demigods looked at the sky where three Pegasus were making their way down.

"I convinced Blackjack and of his friends to give us a ride to Boston…" Percy said with a smile on his face.

The three Pegasus landed smoothly on the ground. One of them the only black one made his way towards Percy.

"Watz up boss! Cold day today for a ride hum…"

"Blackjack right in time! Thanks for the help" Percy said petting the beautiful creature.

"No worries boss, just don't forget, a month of unlimited sugar cubes…" Blackjack reminded Percy. "Wooooow! Who is the hot beauty with you? If you had tol would have to give a ride to such hottie I would have given you a discount boss!"

Percy busted a laugh and introduces Blackjack to Layla. Although, Layla couldn't understand a thing that Blackjack was saying, she smiled and introduced herself.

The ride to Boston was a pain. The cold wind was cutting their faces, the strong streams of cold air made it difficult for the Pegasus to travel. Finally after a couple hours they were flying over the skylines of Boston.

"So, whats the plan?" Layla yelled so the others could hear.

"We have to find clues of who those demons with red eyes are and why they are after you…" Replied Percy. "Ithink it would be a good idea to go by you're your place first so we can warm up for a little bit… What do you think Annabeth?" He looked backwards to get Annabeth's response.

The daughter of Athena hasn't said a word since they left camp. As percy expected he didn't get an answer, so he turned to Layla that was riding right beside him.

"I guess it is up to you to lead the way now."

Layla shook her head in agreement. She was telling Percy where to go, while he was giving the instructions to Blackjack. After almost an hour they had left the metro area of Boston and were flying over a pine florest.

"Just a bit further and we will be able to see a clearing in the woods…" Layla told Percy, "the house should be… right there."

Just as Layla said, a clearing appeared into view. From the sky Percy and Annabeth saw a huge house. It was, as Percy would call "a Colorado mansion style," it seemed even out of place. The Pegasus descendent from the skies and landed on the drive way.

"What a nice house boss… you should marry her and invite me for the parties…" Blackjack said while Percy was dismounting.

"I will work on it." Percy smiled "You can go back now and tell Chiron that we got here."

"Yes boss… be safe." Blackjack and the other three Pegasus flew into the skies again.

The weather had subsided for now, however all the land was covered by a good amount of snow. Layla took the lead walking to the front door of the house. She reached for a vase on the left of the door and grabbed a key from underneath it.

"I'm glad that its still here." The brunet opened the door and invited her friends to come in.

Percy and Annabeth got astonished; the house was absolutely beautiful; the ceilings were high with huge volts, the whole house was made of wood, the house was a mix of rustic and modern.

"Guys I am going upstairs to get some of my stuff… Feel free to light the fireplace, it's the first button on the top right." Layla said throwing the remote control to Percy. "Oh and you can go check the kitchen for food. I don't know what I have left here that is still in eatable condition, but check the pantry I might have something there. If you need something just call me." She ran upstairs right after.

"This place is amazing…" Said Percy sitting on the big dark brown leather couch in front of the fireplace while pressing the buttom.

"Its nice…" Annabeth said studying the ceiling of the house that had really caught her attention "I am gonna go check the pantry and get us something to eat…"

The kitchen, just as the rest of the house was very modern. Annabeth looked around and found some cans of soup. When turning on the burner she felt like someone was observing her. She checked a glass door on the kitchen that led to the back yard but didn't see anything. She observed the snow that was falling again. It was hard to see something specially because it was getting dark. She observed a little longer then relaxed;

"I might be going crazy…"

As soon as she started to walk back towards the oven something went flying through the glass door. Annabeth covered her face in reflex, she turned around and all she could see was snow blowing inside the kitchen. However, in front of her just by her feet, laying among the pieces of glass and snow, a girl with black short spike hair was holding her shield with the face of Medusa engraved on it. Not only that but the girl was sitting on and pushing towards the ground, a boy.

"Thalia what are you doing here?" Annabeth yelled at the girl.

"Oh… hello Annabeth, how are you doing?" Said the girl wile struggling to keep the boy under control.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

**Author's note:** Hey guys its me again! My beta reader has not reviewed this chapter as well so it might be a little tough for you guys to read. I apologize once again! But have fun reading it! Reviews are more thn welcomed!

SEI.2405

VII- What will the weather bring?

"What is going on here?" asked Layla surprised by what she was seeing. The noise of the door breaking was so loud that now Layla and Percy were standing by the kitchen.

Layla stared at the unknown girl in her house but turned her attention to the boy that was under the shield.

"Douma? What are you doing here?" Layla asked the boy that was now staring at her.

"Layla! I saw the lights of your house on, so I came to check if everything was ok and suddenly, this… this crazy girl jumped on me…" The boy tried to explain, still fighting to get off from under the shield.

"Thalia let he go… It looks like he is a friend of Layla." Said Annabeth.

Thalia got up and allowed the boy to stand up. He had long dark hair that fell to his shoulders. His bangs fell to the right side of his face covering some of his eye; his eyes for instance were a deep green. He was muscular but slim and about 6'2.

"Are you ok Douma?" Asked Layla walking towards the guy and cleaning some of the snow from his jacket.

"Yeah, I am fine… Where have you been? I have been trying to call you for days and couldn't reach you…" He asked while giving Layla a warm hug.

Layla pushed him away gently. "It is a long story…" She said staring at Annabeth and Percy. "Lets go to the living room so I can introduce you to my friends. But before lets fix this mess."

After cleaning the mess in the kitchen they moved to the living room. Layla explained that Douma was a childhood friend and had grown up with her. She also explained that her parents treated and trusted Douma like a son and she also saw him as a brother, she made sure to leave the last part very clear.

"Since I was already introduced, I think that that crazy girl should explain what is she doing here if Layla doesn't know her!" Douma was pointing at Thalia that was standing by the fireplace with her arms crossed in front of her chest and sarcastically smiling at the long haired boy.

"Your moron you can ask me that! I have a mouth and so can speak!" Thalia got ready to punch Douma's face.

"Calm down Thalia!" Said Annabeth rubbing her forehead like she had a headache. "However, I am also interested to know what brings you here." Annabeth stared at Thalia's blue eyes.

"Well, first of all let me introduce myself… As you already know my name is Thalia, a hunter of Artemis and daughter of Zeus…"

"Ehhh!" Layla jumped of the couch and stared at Annabeth that once again rubbed her forehead and exhaled ready to explain.

"Layla, this is Thalia, Thalia this is Layla your sister and also a daughter…"

"A daughter of Zeus? Are you serious?" Thalia said in surprise. "I mean… that's… that's great!" She smiled at Layla "I've always wanted a sister! How old are you?"

"Alright, both of you calm down and take a sit! You will have enough time to know each other soon enough. Right now we have more important things to focus on…" Annabeth said while starring at Layla that immediately understood.

"Hey Douma, don't you wanna go prepare some hot tea for us? I really miss that herb mix you make…" Layla asked her friend.

"Sure, no problems." Douma stood up and made his way to the kitchen.

"So Thalia, what are you doing here?" Now it was Percy who asked.

"I am getting there… Artemis sent us to this area a couple weeks ago. She asked us to wait for her orders. The only thing said was that something big was to happen here. As a hunter and a goddess, she predicted beasts with red eyes to appear here. But a few days ago she was ordered to return to Olympus and never showed up again. This morning when we were gathered by the river, down on the valley, I received a Iris call from Chiron. He told me that Artemis had ordered me to come meet you guys and he told me how to find you. Yet, I would never expect such big news as a new daughter of the Big Three to have appeared… Something smells veeeeerrrryyy fishy in here."

"I agree with you." Annabeth answered now observing Layla that had had her eyes fixated on the floor.

Annabeth and Percy took their time explaining Thalia everything that had happened in the past month. Thalia sometimes took the time sneak peak at Layla and smile at her.

"Hey Layla," Percy called the brunet once they were done talking, " where is Douma? He is taking quite a while to bring that tea."

Layla stood up from the couch. "I will go get…" Suddenly a sharp pain struck Layla's head, a pain that she had already felt before. _'Not again…'_ she thought while falling on her knees.

Everything went pitch black, in between lightning, she saw three shapes; two of them were unforgettable, Kevin and Rex. The third, a man wearing a long vest with a hoodie covering his face was fading away in front of the other two. Layla looked around her surroundings and then realized where Kevin and Rex were and they were close.

"This time they will suffer a slow death…" Rex said starring at the house that was just a few miles from the hill where the two red-eyed demons were.

"Layla! Layla! Snap out of it!" The brunet heard Annabeth's voice "What is wrong?"

Layla raised her head and looked straight at Annabeth that was kneeling in front of her. Thalia, Percy and Douma were standing near by looking very concerned.

"We… we need to get out of here…" Layla said in between breaths, "NOW!"

"What is going on?" Thalia asked in apprehension.

"No time to explain." Annabeth took the lead. "Percy, grab our stuff. Thalia you help me out with Layla. Douma what is the easiest way out where no one is gonna notice us?" Annabeth stared at Douma that was standing by the kitchen door with the tray of tea in his hands.

"Layla's parents once showed me a secret passage here in the house. They told me to use only if Layla was in trouble. It leads to a cave in the middle of the mountains. I think I can still remember…"

Layla stood up with Thalia's help and stared at her old friend.

"What are you talking about? I never heard about something like that…"

"They made me promise not to tell you hehehe…" Douma said a little embarrassed.

Out of the blue a huge noise, followed by an earthquake could be felt in the house. The group tried to hold to anything they could find around. Percy moved quickly towards the window to check outside.

"They are here! We have to move." He said moving away from the window once again. "Lets go Douma we will follow you."

Douma led the group through the house and into the office room. He started to check a wall of stones where the fireplace was. To the left of the fireplace he pulled one of the iron instruments that were used to mix the wood. The fireplace started to descend under the floor, giving place to a tunnel. From the office they could hear Rex and Kevin smashing the front door of the house, maybe not only the front door but the front wall as well.

"You damn half-bloods I will smash you like roaches!" Rex yelled.

"Lets go!" Douma said while firing a torch in his hands.

The group started to move towards the dark endless tunnel. Before Layla followed her friends she noticed a pocket notebook on the office's table, she ran and grabbed it. She rushed to the entrance of the tunnel where her friends were waiting for her. By the time she pushed the iron again she could see Kevin and Rex spotting the fireplace closing.

"They wont take long to smash that wall… We have to move fast." Thalia rushed the others to start moving.

Long time had passed since they were walking in the dark cold tunnel and they still haven't reached their destination. Douma was leading the way silently but always attentive to the way they were taking. The tunnel was very narrow and it didn't leave room for two people to walk beside each other. The way was also very tricky, many times the passage led to a two or three way option. Douma explained that if a person took the wrong way he could be led to an abysm or to a dead end. At least that was what Layla's dad told him.

At the end of the line were Thalia and Layla; Thalia was the last one having her shield open in the back to protect the others from an attack and even to scare some unwanted visitors, well you never know what can happen. The entire time Layla and Thalia were talking and trying to know each other better. Layla found Thalia very interesting and couldn't help but feel bad about her story. Other than her punk look and tough temperament Layla liked her personality.

"Well I guess daughters of Zeus are not meant to have a life fulfilled of happiness …" Thalia said in a sincere manner.

Layla just looked down and rubbed her wrist where Excalibur was. The wind started to get stronger and colder.

"We are almost there" Douma announced from the front of the line.

A few moments later they were standing on huge opening that looked like a cave. The cave had a few torches around that Douma made sure to light it.

"Wow, that's a cool place…" Percy said looking at the abysm a few steps to his right.

"Where are we?" Annabeth asked while analyzing the surroundings.

"If you keep going straight towards your left you will end up by the stream down the valley." Douma said pointing to the direction right in front of them.

They were all still looking around when an explosion blew up the entrance from where they had come from. The impact was so big that pushed each one of them to a different direction. Layla stood up coughing due to the dust cloud and the impact.

"How did they find us so fast!?" Exclaimed Thalia already in fighting position.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha you demigods are going to become dead meat! Starting with this one over here!" Kevin said from up the air.

Just then the four demigods realized that someone was missing; on Kevin's hand, hold by the hair they saw Douma. Kevin was flying with his large bat wings over the abysm with swing Douma that was still unconscious as a rag doll.

"Kevin, leave him alone! You know I am the one you are after!" Layla yelled getting Kevin's attention.

"Hum… that is not a bad idea. Since you asked so politely I will let him go…"

As soon as he said it he released the grip from Douma's hair.

"Doumaaaa!" Layla yelled while watching her friends body fall deep into the darkness of the abysm.

"Hahahahahahahaha… Now its gonna be your turn my dear." Said Rex that was standing by the entrance.

Layla didn't say a word, she just stared at the monsters face; her eyes were filled with anger, she had no fear.

"Kevin… Rex… I will slaughter you into pieces…" Layla's tone was austere, decisive and fearsome. She pushed her jacket right sleeve up and revealed Excalibur in bracelet form.

The wind around the cave became stronger as if a storm was about to hit them. Thalia felt the immense energy emanating from Layla; it was as if a blue aura was surrounding the brunet. Thalia searched for Annabeth to get an explanation, but the daughter of Athena had a confused and worried expression on her face.

/

Annabeth felt helpless seeing Douma's body falling in the abysm. However, her worries now were directed to Layla. Excalibur was emanating too much power. She had never seen Layla responding to it like that. It was almost as Excalibur was taking control over Layla.

The daughter of Athena ran towards the brunet. _'What is going on? She didn't even unleashed Excalibur yet!' _Annabeth touched Layla's shoulder but the blond didn't even bother to look towards Annabeth. Annabeth stood in between her friend and the demons that were now having a hard time on standing and flying still due to the strong wind that was pushing them backwards. The daughter of Athena looked Layla in the eyes but it was like the brunet didn't even se her there; Layla was closing her fist so tidily and fiercely that Annabeth saw blood running through her fingers. And suddenly, 'SLAP!' Annabeth slapped Layla in the face as hard as she could.

The wind started to calm down; Layla was frozen in place but had come back to normal;

"W-what happened?" Layla asked looking at her hands and then at Annabeth that was rubbing the hand she had used to slap Layla.

"Good question." Annabeth stared at Layla's face in disbelief.

Darts started to fly in the direction where Layla and the others were standing at; Thalia jumped in front of Annabeth just in time to deflect a set of darts with her shield.

"We need to get out of here. We need a plan to fight against them or to find a way out of here." Thalia said while backing up.

"This way!" Percy said leading them to some stalagmites that made a good temporary barrier.

"Good job seaweed brain! Now we are dead! Our only way out is jumping in the abysm! And I'm sure none of us here can fly!" Thalia yelled angrily while still deflecting some of the darts.

"That's exactly the plan!" Percy said while covering his head and looking at his three friends who looked lost. "There is a stream, a strong one, it can even be a river. If someone buy me some time I can try to make the stream raise to a certain height and catch us!"

The three of them exchanged glances and Layla put her sleeve up;

"Percy, I will give you three minutes not one second more!"

"No!" Annabeth complained. "If you…"

"Annabeth! That's our best option! Thalia needs to stay here and make sure the darts are not gonna reach you and Percy. Besides, I need to settle things down with those two."

"Annabeth she is right! Quit being so worried, she is a daughter of Zeus after all and most importantly my sister hehe!"

"That's what worries me the most…" Said Annabeth shaking her head in disapproval. "Alright, three minutes not a second more."

The four of them motioned their heads in agreement. Layla pulled her right sleeve up;

"Excalibur, serve me as your master!"

Blue energy materialized; Layla used the opportunity to direct some of that in Rex that was knocked down under some rocks. Thalia looked at Annabeth in surprise;

"Is that…?"

"So you know about it as well?" Annabeth replied watching Layla make her move towards Kevin. "Now you know why I was worried about it."

To be continued…


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.

**AN:** Hey guys and girls! I hope you are having a good week! Again, my beta reader didnt answer my email so I just thought about updating without her! I misss herrr soooo muuuch! =((( Have fun with the chap!

SEI-2405

**VIII – Down the drain!**

"Hold on, that sword or… or… bracelet … whatever the heck that is. Is THAT sword?" Thalia asked once again mesmerized.

"Yes." Annabeth replied not even looking at Thalia. "What do you know about it?"

"I've heard about it from Artemis… The most powerful weapon of ALL 'Excalibur'."

"You two! Be quiet! I need to concentrate here!" Percy closed his eyes once again to focus on getting the water stream to listen to him.

While Percy was focused on his task Layla was ready to engage in the fight. The brunet observed around her and notice the stalactites that were hanging around the ceiling of the cave; if she was right Kevin's double ball mace was too big and long to be used in that situation. The daughter of Zeus waited until Kevin made his move; the bat like monsters swag his mace at full speed. Layla Was right the attack got obstructed by the stalactites; dust and rocks flying around were the only effects of the attack.

"Where are you you bastard!" Kevin yelled while gliding at the same spot due to the difficulties to see through the tick cloud of dust.

"ARRRRG!" The winged monster yelled. One of his wings had been chopped by Layla's sharp attack.

"Wow! She is good!" Thalia yelled with enthusiasm.

"Too good to be true…" Annabeth couldn't help but give a shy smile. "Percy, how is it going?" The daughter of Athena turned to Percy.

"All set! We have third seconds to get moving!"

"Layla!" Annabeth yelled the brunet that had Excalibur pointed at Kevin's throat.

"You are lucky. Next time will be your head, enjoy while you can." She said and turned her back to the monster.

The daughter of Zeus started her way back to her friends when she suddenly stopped. A sharp pain made her almost lose her balance. She glanced down towards her lower ribs; a bow arrow had perforated her from behind. Once again she turned in the direction where Kevin was. From up the entrance where they had come from, a silhouette of a slimmer person was fading, his dark clothes covering him from head to toe, making it impossible to figure out his identity.

"Ha-ha-ha… I don't think it will be a next time demigod!" Kevin stared Layla in the eyes. "Hahahaha, the venom in that arrow will give you a painful and long death. That friend of yours was lucky to die the way he did if compared to the way you are going to die hahaha…"

Anger overwhelmed Layla; she griped Excalibur tighter and with one move slashed Kevin's head. The monster just turned into dust and disappeared in the air.

"That was for Douma, ugly face…" She said while materializing Excalibur into bracelet form again.

An earthquake suddenly began. A loud and unrecognizable noise was also heard. Annabeth, Percy, Thalia and Layla stood still for a second.

"That doesn't sound good. We better get out of here…" Thalia suggested.

Layla managed to make her way back to her friends in the middle of the earthquake. She was fighting to stay conscious. Layla stumbled in her feet, but Thalia grabbed her just in time. The shorthaired girl noticed all the blood on Layla's, she raised her gaze and starred at the similar blue eyes not saying a word.

"If we don't go now we will miss our chance!" Percy yelled at his friends.

"Lets go! What are you two waiting for! The stalactites will crush us soon!" Annabeth addressed Layla and Thalia.

Thalia was about to say something when she heard Layla's wisper;

"Please don't say anything… at least for now."

Thalia bit her tong. She understood her; she wouldn't like to worry her friends as well. The hunter of Artemis nodded in agreement and helped Layla up. At Percy's signal the four of them jumped down the abysm. The last thing Layla saw before passing out was a strong stream of water rising up and catching them in the middle of the fall.

/

Percy had managed to get to the shore. He was exhausted he couldn't control the stream very well. He had also lost track of where were his friends. He stood up by the margin of the river looking for his friends; a little further down he found Annabeth laying on the ground.

"Annabeth! Annabeth!" – Percy called friends name until she woke up.

"Stop being so noisy Percy…" The daughter of Athena sat down. In front of her the river was flowing slowly while on her surrounding all she could se was a forest covered by white snow. "Where are we?"

"I don't know. But at least I was able to keep us dry because the weather looks horrible." Percy said also looking around.

A noise coming from the woods behind them startled them. They saw Thalia coming towards them. Both demigods exhaled in relief.

"We have a problem." Thalia said looking her friends in the eyes.

Percy and Annabeth knew that the daughter of Zeus was serious since there was no room for jokes in her tone. They followed the spike haired girl to a clearing in the middle of the trees. There was snow everywhere; Percy and Annabeth saw that Thalia had managed to clear an area in the middle of the small clearing and that she also had started a small fire. By a tree close to the fire they saw Layla sitting down.

"Thank to the Gods everyone is fine…" Percy said scratching the back of his head.

Annabeth turned her glance to Thalia; the hunter looked too serious and worried. The blond widened her eyes and ran towards the brunet that was sitting by the tree. Annabeth's heart skipped a beat; in front of her, Layla was sitting covered in blood from the chest down. Annabeth gently pushed the right side of the brunet's jacket away; there she saw a small arrow that had perforated the girl from behind. Annabeth looked at Layla's face, the girl was pale and breathing hard. The daughter of Athena dropped her backpack on the side and got a first aid kit.

"Layla, I have to take the arrow out…" Annabeth said looking at Layla.

"Don't touch the arrow…" The brunet managed to say with difficulty. "There is venom in it… I don't want anyone else to get hurt…"

Annabeth ignored what Layla said, but she knew she was talking about what had happened to Douma.

"Don't worry, I will be careful."

Percy and Thalia were standing right behind Annabeth no knowing what to do.

"How can we help Annabeth?" Asked Percy with worry in his voice.

"…" Annabeth paused for a second and searched for some thing on her backpack; she then put out a piece of cloth, and extra long sleeve shirt and an aluminum water bottle. "Percy, go to the river and fill the water bottle, after that boil the water for me please… Thalia, I am going to need your help…" Both nod in agreement.

Percy left almost immediately after Annabeth asked him to grab some water. The daughter of Athena had now asked Thalia to hold Layla away from the tree she was leaning on; she also had rolled the piece of cloth she had with her.

"Layla I need you to bite this cloth as hard as you can… The arrow didn't go all the way through, so the best way to take it out is to push it from the back and then pull it from the front, so nothing stays inside…" Annabeth was explaining while analyzing the place where the arrow was. "I don't think it got any of your organs, hopefully… But I gotta tell you its gonna hurt."

Layla used Thalia as support to be able to face Annabeth; she smiled at the silver-eyed girl;

"Lets finish this fast…" The brunet said taking the towel from Annabeth's hands and placing it in her mouth. She leaned forward and rested her forehead in Thalia's shoulder.

Annabeth moved right behind Layla and looked at the small piece of the arrow that was showing on the outside of Layla's leather jacket. She then took a deep breath and turned her eyes to Thalia. Thalia smiled and gave Annabeth thumbs up. After that the hunter held Layla firmly in case she collapsed.

"Alright… 1, 2 …" On three Annabeth pushed the arrow as hard as she could. Layla yelled loudly in pain.

Percy that was still boiling the water by the fire, couldn't help but clench his teeth and close his eyes by the scream of pain coming from where the girls were. When he finally thought it had ended a second scream followed. He grabbed the hot bottle where the boiling water was and went to meet with the others. When he got the he saw Thalia holding Layla, that was now unconscious because of the unbearable pain and Annabeth with hands covered in blood placing the arrow in a piece of cloth. The boy handed the bottle of water to the blond;

"Is she going to be ok? … Are you ok?" Percy placed his hand on Annabeth's shoulder.

"Percy, I need you to get in contact with Grover using your apathy bond. Tell him to bring some ambrosia with him and to get here as soon as possible."

Annabeth's voice was trembling. Percy didn't dare to ask her anything else.

Annabeth and Thalia slowly took Layla's jacket and under shirt off; while Thalia held Layla, Annabeth soaked the towel with hot water and started to clean the wound that the arrow left in Layla. After cleaning the best she could, the daughter of Athena stopped the bleeding by wrapping Layla's waist with some gauze she had on her first aid kit. They replaced the dirty shirt Layla was wearing by the long sleeve Annabeth had taken out of her backpack earlier on. After, they placed a sleeping bag near by the fire and laid Layla on it.

"I'm going to wash my hands and take care of the dirty clothes in the river… Let me know with something comes up." Annabeth said leaving in the direction of the river.

"Percy, what is wrong with Annabeth?"

The son of Poseidon turned towards Thalia;

"All I know is that she didn't want Layla to come with us. She was scared that something like this would happen… It looks like she was right…"

The silence took place; only the noise of the leafs being blown by the cold wind could be heard; the night was cold and the sky was covered by heavy clouds. Annabeth came back and hanged Layla's shirt on a branch of a tree that was near by the fire. After that she took a seat by Thalia. The hunter noticed that Annabeth's eyes were red from crying.

"Annabeth…" Thalia asked for her friends attention. "Tell us what you know about Layla and Excalibur…"

Annabeth looked surprised by Thalia's request, yet, she knew that she couldn't hide it anymore, specially from her two best friends.

"Do you guys know the legend of Excalibur?" Annabeth asked while immersed at the flames of the fire in front of her.

**To be continued… **

**AN: I Would love some reviews! Thanks for reading!  
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	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of this fiction other than Layla. This fiction does not have any intention of so ever of plagiarizing any previous work of Rick Riordan.**

**SEI-2405**

**IX – Excalibur and the Olympian Gods**

"Do you guys know the legend of Excalibur?" Annabeth asked while starring at the fire.

"Of course! It was the sword in the stone, the one who gave Arthur the right to be king and also to be called the 'King of Knights'… But what does this have to do with the 'Excalibur' that Layla carry?" Percy asked confused.

"A long time ago there was a legend of a weapon forged to the Gods. This weapon mysteriously disappeared. Some say that the weapon had its own life and own desires. The incident of King Arthur just arose the gods interest by Excalibur. After King Arthur took Excalibur from the rock, he became one of the most famous kings of all time. Humans started to follow him and believe that he was their God. The God's saw that as a betrayal and decided to seek for revenge. However, not many know why the god's are so interested about Excalibur; Excalibur always chose a demigod as one of its owner, do you know why?" Annabeth asked once again, but had no response "Excalibur is also called the "Slayer of Gods," if in the hands of a demigod who is suited to carry the power of Excalibur, this demigod will also hold the power to destroy Olympus. Meaning that that demigod will hold the power to kill the immortal Gods. There is a catch though, through history the only demigods who proved to carry this amazing power were daughters and sons of Athena… The Gods made sure to hunt and kill all the demigods that once possessed Excalibur…"

"Hold on! So why are them not after Layla?" Percy asked

"Seaweed brain, didn't you listen?! Only the sons or daughters of Athena had the power to kill the gods and Layla is a daughter of Zeus!" Thalia answered Percy's question with no patience.

"Enjoying the cold weather?" A voice from behind the shadows asked. Percy, Annabeth and Thalia turned to the direction where it came from.

Nico came from the shadows wearing his old black outfit. Behind him a troubled satyr tried to walk through the snow with a huge backpack on his back.

"I hate snow! I hate snow! I HATE SNOW! Man what a pain in the butt!" Grover said dropping the heavy backpack on the floor and shaking away some snow from his satyr's paws. "What's up Percy! I came as fast as I could, and I brought the things you asked me for." He kept going until he saw Thalias face. "Thalia! How have you been? I missed you so much! These guys are going berserk without you around…"

"I'm doing fine. Thanks." Thalia replied with a half assessed smile.

"How is Layla doing?" Now was Nico who asked.

"Not too good. Have you brought the ambrosia?" Annabeth asked Grover who was already handing her the food of the Gods.

"I also brought some fresh water, food and sleeping bags…" Grover was already unpacking the bag and making a mess.

Annabeth got the ambrosia and walked towards the place where Layla was laying at. She stared at the brunet's sleeping face; she was pale and sweaty. Annabeth moved some of Laylas hair away from her wet forehead. She then remembered about the arrow that had pierced Layla. She grabbed the towel where the arrow was and handed to Grover;

"Grover I know it's a lot to ask but could you please see if you can find out which poison is in this arrow?"

"Of course! My satyr smell is the best and my knowledge of poisons are pretty good since I gotta know what I can eat and what I have to avoid in the wild…"

"Cut out the crap and start studying it…" Thalia interrupted Grover.

The satyr unwrapped the arrow and before he did anything else he froze and threw the arrow far away as first instinct.

"What is it now?" Thalia was the one to ask.

"Th-this is not good…" Grover said cleaning his hands on the snow just to make sure none of the poison had touched him.

"What is it?" Percy asked nervously.

"This is basilisk poison! One of the deadliest on earth! Even the Gods fear to get poisoned by it. In the first hours the poison cause a horrible pain through out the body, fever and internal bleeding… If it is not enough the second stage of the poisoning works on blocking your five senses until there is nothing else left other than death… A looooong and painful death. Not even the ambrosia is going to help, it will only delay the effects of the poison."

"Is there any antidote for it?" Thalia asked with her hands together in front of her mouth with concern about the answer.

"The only case I heard that survived happened centuries ago…" Grover replied sadly shaking his head negatively.

Annabeth closed her fist and punched the ground with all her strength "It must have a way!" she said quietly. "Grover you have to remember how! No matter what, you have to remember how this person survived!" Annabeth stared at Grover with assertive eyes. All of them looked at her but they didn't have the courage to say anything.

Annabeth was sitting there holding herself not to cry, what Grover had said almost broke her down, suddenly her attention was dragged away from Grover;

"Hey… calm down…" – Layla's faint voice made Annabeth turn around. "I am gonna be fine…"

Annabeth was now staring at Layla that was pushing a faint smile at her. The daughter of Athena could see in how much pain the blue eyed girl was.

"Can you… can you stop saying that please…" – Annabeth had her head down, her blond hair was falling covering her face.

Layla could see the tears running down Annabeth's cheek. Layla carefully wiped them away. The gesture made the daughter of Athena stare straight at Layla's blue eyes. The blond wiped down her face quickly and looked for the ambrosia that Grover had given to her. She cut a piece of it with her bronze knife;

"Here… eat this… it's going to make you feel a little better…" The silver eyed girl helped Layla lift her head and fed the brunet with the piece of ambrosia. "Now take a rest we will think about something…"

"Annabeth… before that, could you pass me my eye-drop? My eye is bothering me…"

"Sure." Annabeth reached for Layla's jacket that was by her side and grabbed the eye-drop from the pocket. She handed it to the girl that was lying down. She observed Layla and saw her hands trembling. Annabeth then gently took the eye-drop bottle from the brunet's hand;

"Let me help you." Annabeth got ready to apply the eye-drop on Layla's eye. When they locked eyes the blond got immersed in the brunet's glance, for a split second she had the feeling that Layla's left eye had changed colors; she looked again but all she saw was the sky-blue eye. She shook her head out of the thought and applied the eye drop on Layla's eye. The brunet instantly closed her eyes and fell asleep.

"Annabeth, we must talk." Nico was sitting with a serious expression on his face. "Before we came here Chiron warned us about a beast that was about to be awaken. He said we have never faced something like that before, he warned us to stay away of its way."

"Yeah, Artemis told us the same thing…" Thalia complemented.

"Well now is not time for that, it's late and we have to figure out a way to find and antidote for Layla. Let's try to rest for the night…" Percy suggested, "You girls go to bed, Nico, Grover and I are gonna take the first watch."

The night flew by in an instant. Annabeth felt that the past four hours passed in a second; she woke up and gazed around; the snow was still covering the surrounding areas, Grover was asleep near the remaining bonfire, while Nico and Percy where nowhere around. The daughter of Athena grabbed one of the bottles of water that Grover had brought. She shivered by the cold wind that was blowing. All of a sudden she saw the silhouette of a woman by the trees, she then placed the water close to her bag and walked on the woman's direction;

"Mother, what brings you here?" Annabeth kneeled in one knee and lowered her head, before bringing her eyes to face Athena.

The Goddess smiled gently at her daughter. "Please stand up Annabeth… I come here to warn you…" She said with a gentle but firm voice.

Annabeth stood up slowly. "Warn me about what mother?"

"This quest…" the Goddess paused for a moment and glanced at the place where the others were resting, "is necessary for the survival of the Gods. However, they have imposed many obstacles on your way. Lives will be taken if no rational actions are taken. In a couple days a challenge bigger than you have ever faced will come…"

"Mother…" Annabeth interrupted Athena "Why are you here? The gods are not supposed to interfere on the demigods quests, what is your true purpose?" Annabeth had a serious tone.

"I see… No wonder you are the smartest of my children… I come here on the behalf of that young lady who became your friend. If you want my help to find the antidote I will be willing to give you a clue, however it will cost you…" Athena was staring at Annabeth with her silver eyes that were even more intense than Annabeth's.

Annabeth smiled and passed her hand on her hair moving it backwards, "Of course… I forgot the gods were into the capitalist system, where nothing comes for free…" she said sarcastically. "And what would be the price?"

"A compromise." The goddess said still in a calm voice. "A compromise that after the quest, that girl will be turned in to the Gods."

"Hold on a second! Even though you are my mother I cannot compromise with such a thing! That's not for me to decide!" Annabeth was furious.

"If you don't accept that girl will die. Even with the ambrosia, she will die in two days from now."

Annabeth turned towards the bonfire. She was in a bad situation. She didn't know what to do. The confusion, the anger, and the worry started to take over her thoughts.

"So, what is going to be?" Athena asked once again.

Annabeth brought her glance towards her mother once again. With furious eyes she clenched her teeth.

"I will agree with your compromise. However, I will give her the option to come to you, if she refuses I will not be the one imposing into her." She said in an austere way.

"Good decision. The source of the cure is the same source of life, however the answer is where it begins, north from here…"

"Hold on a second, how am I suppose to understand that? And…"

"That's all I can tell you my child. Oh, one more thing… That girl is the key on successfully defeating the monster that is to be awaken…"

Annabeth stared at her mother that was already walking and fading away.

"And… I would also hate to see her dying…" with those last words Athena faded with a sad smile on her face.

Annabeth stood still at the same place for a while, she was confused, very confused. One for the fact that Athena had said more than she should, but most important and what was really triggering the blonde was the smile that her mother had left with. Just like she was caring for someone… Not that Athena had never cared about Annabeth but to care about a daughter of Zeus… that was really shocking.

Meanwhile in a mountain not far away

A huge man almost monster like dominated by anger was on rampage destroying all on his surroundings.

"Those piece of meat! I will kill them! ALL OF THEM!" The monster yelled while picking a tree by the bottom and throwing against a few others. His veins were almost popping out of his skin; one of his eyes was bleeding and unusable.

"Rex. Calm down." A voice came from behind. Immediately, the big monster went on his knees. "All was part of the plan."

"But boss, they killed Kevin." Rex now replied.

"Yes, they did indeed." A long black vest covered the person who replied, while a large hood hid his face. "However, it was necessary. The time when 'The Thousand' will awake is approaching. And so my powers will be fully restored. Soon we will end with the era of the Gods and we will reign."

Rex watched the man's footsteps getting closer to the cliff in front of them.

"How can you be so sure that that girl will come to our side…"

"Don't worry. It will happen. Wait here for my orders. Keep on following them. In two days, if that girl survives, I will be closer to my goal and I will have orders for you." Just like that the man faded in a dark smoke.

Annabeth went back just in time to catch Percy and Nico arriving. The boys had gotten a couple of quails to be eaten. Thalia and Grover were now awake as well. Grover was fixing the bonfire putting more dry branches that he collected, while Thalia was checking on Layla;

"How is she doing?" Annabeth asked while kneeling close to Thalia.

Thalia moved Layla's shirt a little up to check the wound. The bandages were tainted by blood; Thalia decided not to replace them at that time, she then fixed Layla's shirt and covered her with the blankets once again. The daughter of Zeus shook her head negatively and turned to Annabeth;

"This is not good… She is running a very high fever. We need to find out a way to fix her fast." She said with worries in her voice.

Annabeth brought her head to Layla's forehead and checked her temperature; she confirmed what Thalia had said. She then stood up and looked at her friends that were staring at her;

"I just had a conversation with Athena…" Annabeth paused and stared at her friends' faces that showed worry towards her words.

"What did she want?" Percy asked coldly while handing the quail to Grover so he could prepare them.

Annabeth explained all that had happened, not touching the part of the agreement with her mother.

" '_The source of the cure is the same source of life, however the answer is where it begins, north from here.'" _Thalia repeated the words that Athena had said. "Hold on… the source of life for humans, isn't it water?" She asked looking around for a confirmation from her friends.

"AHHHH!" Grover yelled jumping from his seat with his right index finger pointing up and holding a quail on the stick on his left hand. "I remember! I remember! That's it!"

Percy, Nico, Annabeth and Thalia stared at the satyr who had a moment of clarity.

"Come on guys! Look a little more happy please!" The satyr sat down once again.

"Well if we knew what you are talking about maybe we would…" Nico said with a sarcastic smile.

"Right right… Let me explain! Do you remember the only case that survived the basilisk poison that I told you? I remember what people said about it… It was said that the person drank from the most pure of the waters… a water so pure that purified the soul and body, getting reed of all the impurities of life… On the other hand this water for being so pure is said to have side effects on the gods and half-blood and those side effects vary from person to person or god to god… However, many believe that this is just a myth…" he finished putting the quail back on top of the bonfire.

"But that is our best option of saving Layla." Percy said staring at his friends. "So if you all agree, lets go get some of this water." Percy looked at the heads that motioned positively.

"Still, where can this water be…" Annabeth asked

" _is where it begins north from here_…" Annabeth said deep in her thoughts. "I know! It has to be a nascent of water north from here. And most of them are in high places like in a mountain or so…"

"That's it! While I was exploring the area with the hunters and Artemis, we saw something like that in the area. However it would take us a day to go and come back and having to carry Layla like that would take even longer." Thalia said.

"We will have to split… A group would go get the water and a group would stay behind with Layla…" Annabeth suggested.

"Agreed." Percy placed a hand in Nico's shoulder smiling with the idea. "I would suggest, Thalia, Grover and I go take the trip north… since Thalia knows the way, I can control water, at least sometimes, and Grover is the most agile if we need to climb mountains. Is that ok with you, Annabeth, Nico?"

"Fine with me." Nico said while turning a quail.

"What about with you Annabeth?" The son of Poseidon asked the daughter of Athena that was once again starring at the fire.

Annabeth looked at Layla, and grabbed her backpack that was near by. She then took the small bottle Rachel had given to her and handed to Percy that took it without saying anything.

"It is ok with me. But if you don't come back in time with this water, seaweed head, I will make sure to kill you with my own hands." Annabeth smiled at her friends.

"No worries. We will be back. So lets pack some stuff and go. Nico and I found a shallow cave near by, I think it would be a good idea for you guys to move over there." Percy said.

"He is right," Thalia starred at the sky that was covered in white heavy clouds, "It doesn't look like the weather will be retreating for now."

The five of them agreed on eating and departing. After they ate the quail, which were very good according to Percy, they disassembled the bonfire and erased all traces that could lead to them.

"The cave I was talking about is only ten minutes from here, it is on a clearing at the forest by the bottom of a mountain, there is also a waterfall falling besides it and the river runs right in front of it. Nico and I already went there and its safe. The only problem would be to escape if something blocked the main entrance, but I think you just need to be careful not to be seen there." Percy said while giving his backpack to Nico. "I will carry Layla until there."

Annabeth and Thalia helped Percy to put Layla in his back; she was hot and all sweaty from the high fever, and was breathing very hard. They started to walk with Nico leading the way; they walked on an indian-line so Grover could cover their steps on the snow with a tree branch.

The cave was small, but big enough to fit at least the three of them and a bonfire if they needed. The place was located close to the river that was running slowly due to the extreme cold. Percy, Thalia and Grover helped to look around for suspicious activity and left right away.

Annabeth and Nico were fixing some stuff around the place so they could rest while waiting. Annabeth once again checked on Layla;

"How is she doing?" Nico asked sitting by a rock near by.

"It doesn't look good. Her fever is getting even higher… I am scared of giving her more of the ambrosia… She is also sweating a lot and I have to clean her wound again…" Annabeth said while analyzing Layla's wound under her shirt. She took a peek at Nico who seemed very embarrassed. The daughter of Athena didn't understand why until she figured that she had moved Layla's shirt to the height of her chest, making all her stomach visible to Nico, she then placed the shirt back and smiled at the younger boy.

"I-I'm going to get some dry branches to start a bonfire so we don't need to worry about it at night. You can use that time to do what you want… I-I mean what you need. I will also place some of my underworld subordinates around so they can let us know if we have unwelcomed visitors." The boy smiled at the daughter of Athena.

"Thank you very much Nico, be careful…" The blonde replied with a smile.

"You are welcome, you can use the water from the bottles that Grover brought… I'll make sure to get plenty more on the way back and if you need me yell." He stood up and made his way out.

'It looks like the little boy is growing up'. – Annabeth thought with herself. She brushed away some of Layla's hair from her face. – "Even in this situation she seems so brave… Gosh, she is beautiful… … …" Annabeth froze in place staring at Layla. "Annabeth stop! You need to worry on keeping her alive."

Layla's body was feeling heavy; she could barely move her fingers. She didn't know what was going on. She saw herself in a dark place, no one was around. She tried to look for Annabeth and the others, but her eyesight wasn't made for places like that. From nowhere, her left eye started to burn and intensely hurt. She brought her hand to her eye, by instinct she searched for her eye drop on her jacket pocket, but it was of no use, the eye drop wasn't there. A voice in which she had no problems on recognizing was laughing. From many nights that person wearing the black-hood vest was bothering her. She was sick of it already.

Suddenly the sapphire on Excalibur started to pulse intensely. Layla could feel her body even heavier. The voice was still whispering words that she couldn't understand. She was almost giving in when a hand touched her shoulder. Where she was, in that dark place, she saw Douma with a huge smile in front of her. He offered her his hand. She accepted and stood up still with a hand in front of her eye. The boy with green eyes and dark hair smiled at her;

"You can let it go… There is no problem." He said.

Layla dropped her hand just to realize that the pain had gone away. She also noticed that Excalibur was pulsing even more frenetically. She wanted to ask her friend how, but he was already walking away. She ran after him, but she couldn't reach him.

"Douma! Douma! Wait! Douma!" She fell on the floor. Her body was killing her, her head started to get heavy it became hard to breath and while her consciousness was fading away she watched Douma disappear in the darkness.

***  
>"Annabeth! What is going on?" Nico yelled dropping the wood and the water he had brought on the floor and running towards Annabeth.<p>

The blond was now on top of Layla holding her down. The daughter of Zeus was contorting her body involuntarily.

"Nico! She is having a seizure! Come here and grab me that towel besides my bag! Fast!"

Nico listened to what Annabeth said, he grabbed the towel and ran to Annabeth kneeling right in front of her.

"Place the towel on her mouth so she can bite on it. We cant let her bite or choke on her tongue…" Annabeth said with difficulty while trying to stop Layla.

Nico did what he was told to and helped Annabeth. After a few minutes the attack passed. Annabeth let it go, and Nico relaxed by laying down on the floor.

"What was that?" He asked while staring at the ceiling of the cave.

"Her fever is very high… If we don't bring it down it's going to happen again…" Annabeth said still checking on the brunet girl that was lying down helpless in front of her. The daughter of Athena then realized;

"Nico, if its not much to ask you, can you bring me some snow?"

"Whaat?" Nico stood up and looked at his friend like she was crazy.

"Im gonna use the snow to bring her fever down…" Annabeth replied staring at Layla's body that was now showing all her skin and muscles.

Nico looked at it and blushed. He then stood up, grabbed a pan that Grover had in his bag and started walking away…

"Oh come on Nico! You don't need to blush, she has her sports bra on!" Annabeth said making a little of fun of him.

"I will be back soon and will leave again to leave you two comfortable." He said not starring backwards.

Nico came back with the snow Annabeth had asked him. He then started to built the bonfire to leave Annabeth comfortable; he was also worried but he was shy too look in the direction of the two girls.

Annabeth grabbed the snow Nico had brought in and slowly started to apply on Layla's body. She started with her face, slowly moving down to the neck; Annabeth could see and feel Layla's reaction to the extremely cold snow touching her feverish body;

"I am sorry Layla but that's the only way I could think about…" She apologized in a low tone still applying the snow on the brunet.

She repeated the process many times until the fever subsided a little; she also used the opportunity to clean up and re-tape the wound. After she finished she dried Laylas body and redressed her, making sure she would be warm.

The daughter of Athena was exhausted, she drank some water fed Layla a small portion of the ambrosia and lay down by the wall besides Layla;

"Nico…" she called for her friend that was at the other side of the bonfire playing with the burning char. "I am gonna rest for a little, if you need something let me know…" Just like that the silver-eyed girl fell asleep.

**To be continued...  
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**A/N: Hey guys we are finally getting to some fun stuff here! now things are going to get exciting! i hope you are enjoying this fiction even without my beta reader! i know... we need to make her come back i agree i agree! ow well as you know reviews would be very exciting to read even if they are not positive! thanks once again for following this fic! SEI-2405**


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